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On the cemented terrace of his house in Roorkee, Uttarakhand, Rajendra Pant would tie a pillow to the chest of his young son Rishabh and bowl at speed with a cork ball from close range to make the young cricketer fearless about facing fast bowlers.
That, coupled with Maltova-mixed milk, gave strength to Rishabh's mind and frame - which was amply on display on Tuesday when the batsman hammered an unbeaten 89 in Brisbane to carry India to a 2-1 Test series triumph over Australia.
Rishabh would also take two tiffin boxes to school so that he could stay back for cricket practice after class.
Rajendra died in his sleep in Roorkee on April 7, 2017, aged 53.
But his cricket coaching classes surely benefited his talented 23-year-old son, who played the "most important" innings of his fledgling Test career as he confidently confronted the fearsome Australian pace attack of Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazlewood at the Gabba.
"I used to make him practise with a cork ball on the cemented rooftop of our Roorkee home where the ball came off faster," Rajendra said a year before he died. "There was no turf pitch in the city at the time.
"I used to tie a pillow to his chest so that my little boy didn't get hurt while facing faster deliveries. But he did get hurt - suffered a fracture.
"It was also meant to take out the fear of facing fast bowling. That was extra coaching, apart from the coaching he received in school."
Later, seeing the talent that their son possessed, Rajendra and his wife Saroj took the big decision of sending Rishabh to noted coach Tarak Sinha's academy in Delhi.
Commuting was a big challenge, but Saroj would wake up in the middle of the night to catch the 3am bus from Roorkee to Delhi for an arduous five-hour journey along with Rishabh so that he could attend the Sinha-run Sonnet Club's net practice sessions on Saturdays and Sundays at the Sri Venkateswara College in south Delhi.
The pair would often stay at a gurudwara near the college on the weekends, before Rishabh could afford rented accommodation.
Sinha later doubled up as Rishabh's local guardian.
On Tuesday, after India's win and receiving the Man of the Match award, Rishabh, who ended up with the highest aggregate for India with 274 runs in three Tests, called Sinha on WhatsApp.
The coach was happy with his ward's performance and congratulated him.
"I am happy that Rishabh played responsibly and sensibly," said Sinha.
"He now has a good temperament. And I have a feeling that the Australians fear him."
Over the past two years, Rishabh has often been vilified in India for his irresponsible batting performances.
His dismissal in the 2019 World Cup semi-final, which India lost, after he got set had become a reference point for his critics.
He was panned for sticking to his flamboyant, aggressive natural game. The team management also accused him of not knowing the difference between being carefree and careless.
Significantly, Rishabh, who was promoted to No. 5 (in the first innings he batted at No. 6) on Tuesday, remained unbeaten after a three-hour vigil at the crease while facing 138 balls.
"This was in his mind for a long time - to remain unbeaten and take the team to victory - after some people had criticised him for not finishing off matches," said Sinha.
"He wanted to be a finisher, and he showed it (on Tuesday) that he is on his way."
Rishabh's knock may have cemented his place in India's Test XI.
Given his hard-hitting style, it could also give him a permanent spot in India's one-day international and Twenty20 teams.
In India he is now being hailed as the natural heir to Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who had for long excelled as India's wicketkeeper-batsman and captain.
Indo-Asian News Service
"I used to tie a pillow to his chest so that my little boy didn't get hurt while facing faster deliveries... It was also meant to take out the fear of facing fast bowling."
- The late Rajendra Pant on his extra coaching sessions with Rishabh
