When things on the field get tough for Australian wicketkeeper Alex Carey this summer he could do worse than casting a thought to his Indian counterpart Rishabh Pant.
Pant almost died on December 30, 2022 when the car he was travelling in crashed into a road divider.
The star wicketkeeper pleaded for bystanders to help pull him from the wreckage, conscious that the smell of leaking petrol meant there was a strong chance the car could soon explode.
Clumps of skin from his neck, back and legs were peeled away as Pant was pulled through the shattered car window.
Moments later and with Pant being attended to on the side of the road, the car burst into flames.
Pant knows he was lucky to be alive.
But with his right knee dislocated among his many other injuries, there were grave fears his international cricket career was over.
The 27-year-old underwent surgery in January, 2023, and remarkably was back playing cricket a year later.
He returned to the national set-up for India's T20 World Cup triumph in June and made his Test return in September.
Pant looms as a key player in the upcoming five-Test series against Australia, and Carey is happy to see him back in action.
"Amazing story, great character for cricket, great player to watch," Carey said.
"Hopefully he doesn't have a great summer. But I think just the whole story around where he's been and where he is now is phenomenal.
"He's one of those players that puts eyes on the TV. I'm looking forward to seeing him. I spent some time with him at Delhi (in the IPL), and he's a great character, too.
"It looks like he hasn't really missed a beat either.
"He's highly skilful and the rehab he had to go through would have been pretty tough, no doubt.
"So yeah, amazing story, and great to see him back playing cricket."
It's not uncommon for star international batters from India to struggle on the bouncier wickets in Australia.
Pant is clearly one of the exceptions.
The talented left-hander cracked 350 runs at an average of 58.33 as India won the Border-Gavaskar trophy in Australia in 2018/19.
And Pant was at it again two years later, averaging 68.5 across the four-Test series in Australia as India again came up trumps.
He has also been in strong form since returning from his car crash injuries, posting three half-centuries from his six knocks in India's shock 3-0 Test series loss to NZ in India.
