Rishabh Pant has been a curious case for India in the past few years. The left-handed explosive batsman made a name for himself in the Indian Premier League with his free flowing attacking shots, and his ability to hit boundaries at will. The young wicketkeeper-batsman was largely seen as the replacement for Mahendra Singh Dhoni when the former India cricketer decides to hang up his boots. But the year 2019 has not been the best for Pant, who saw himself constantly being in and out of team, and also faced criticism from fans for inconsistent performances.
Though, in IPL, Pant has been sensational over the years, and has been one of the most consistent performers for the Delhi Capitals franchise. Every opposition in IPL knows that till the time Pant is in the middle, the game is far from over.
Delhi Capitals assistant coach Mohammad Kaif, in a recent interaction, explained the one thing which is missing for Pant when he plays for India, which he has going for him when he plays for Delhi Capitals.
“Rishabh Pant is a free-flowing player. You have to set his batting position, that he will bat at this position and he will get this many overs to play. He needs to be clear in his head that he will get this many overs so that he is not thinking whether he needs to take singles, or if he needs to defend. He is an attacking batsman, he should start hitting attacking shots from the first ball,” Kaif told former India cricketer Aakash Chopra in his Youtube chat show ‘Aakash Vani’.
“So, at Delhi Capitals, me, Dada and Ricky Ponting discussed a few times that whether to send Pant at no. 3 or no. 4. But later we decided that Pant should get at least 60 balls to play. It doesn’t matter which position he is batting at, he needs to get final 10 overs. This thing has not yet been decided by Indian team,” Kaif added.
“He sometimes bats in the 15th over in a 50-over match. A finisher or an attacking batsman should be given the same role. The Indian team has not been able to figure out Pant’s batting slot right now. But in IPL, we have figured it out. This is why he has played great in IPL, because he plays with a free-flow cricket,” the former India batsman further said.
