Pant is currently in England for a five-match Test series, which is set to begin on June 20. The wicketkeeper-batter revealed that the country was saddened by the accident, and the Indian cricket team would try to make the country happy again in the upcoming Tests.

“See, what happened in the aircraft—I think the whole of India were saddened, disheartened. At the same time, the only thing from our side is, we are going to be sticking to them how we can make India happy again. Obviously, emotions are going to be high because of what happened in the crash. But at the same time, we want to put our best foot forward for the country,” he said.

The Air India crash also saw a delay in the unveiling of the newly renamed Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy, which was formerly known as the Pataudi Trophy.

The upcoming series will see a new generation take over the mantle, with Shubman Gill appointed as skipper. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are not part of the team anymore, having announced their Test retirements. Meanwhile, R Ashwin retired from all formats at the recent Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

With the departure of the trio, the only remaining members from the previous leadership are Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, Pant and KL Rahul. The upcoming series will also see a new top-order for India, with Sai Sudharsan expected to make his debut and comeback king Karun Nair also in contention.