Rishabh Pant To Wear Virat Kohli's No.18 On Back? Star's 'India A' Act Has Social Media Abuzz

Star wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant made his much-awaited return to competitive cricket on Thursday, walking out to lead India A in the first unofficial Test against South Africa A in Bengaluru. The 28-year-old has been out of action since fracturing the fifth metatarsal of his right foot during the fourth Test against England in Manchester earlier this year. Pant, who is the vice-captain of the Indian Test team, walked straight into the India A side as captain, hoping to warm up ahead of the upcoming two-match Test series against South Africa, starting November 14.

However, the southpaw caught the attention of the fans on social media after he walked out in the middle wearing Virat Kohli's iconic no. 18 jersey on the back.

Pant's act left social media wondering whether he is changing his number.

Rishabh Pant wears Virat Kohli's iconic No.18 jersey on his return to cricket after Kohli's Test retirement. pic.twitter.com/NmodoYzEmB

— Mr Whio (@MrWhio) October 30, 2025

Rishabh Pant is making a mockery of No. 18. Is he doing this to get GG'a attention?
He is wearing the No. 18 jersey. This is King Kohli's jersey. In the sports world, when a legend retires, his number is not given to another player as a sign of respect. pic.twitter.com/VISiWMA9ah

— jataayu (@WoKyaHotaHai) October 30, 2025

But, this is not the first time that an Indian player has been spotted donning the iconic number, following Kohli's retirement from Test cricket in May 2025.

Pacer Mukesh Kumar did it before Pant during an unofficial Test between India A and England Lions in June earlier this year. Mukesh was criticised by fans on social media, calling it an act of disrespect towards the legendary batter.

BCCI issued a clarification on that same, saying that while a player can wear any number during an unofficial Tests, the digits for their international kit cannot be altered.

"Mukesh wore No. 18 during the opening 'Test' match versus Lions. But when it comes to India A squad, there are no fixed numbers as jerseys don't have names. Anyone can pick any random number. The jersey numbers are only sacrosanct for international games," a BCCI official had told PTI.

Following Kohli's retirement, fans had urged the BCCI to retire his iconic jersey, just like they did it for Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni following their exits from international cricket.

Topics mentioned in this article

India A South Africa Cricket Team Rishabh Pant Virat Kohli Cricket