Test cricket has always been considered the most difficult format to succeed and it is also believed that if one can bat ruthlessly in red-ball cricket, one can replicate it in the white-ball format, but the star wicketkeeper Not so with the batsman. Rishabh Pant.
Time and again, with his sensational knocks, Pant has proved that he is a ‘special’ talent and from the point of view of his counter-attack, a match or sometimes a delicately crafted series in a season or less. can also change.
However, the same Pant looks like a completely different player in the white-ball formats (ODIs and T20Is) and it is quite shocking as one believes that his natural stroke game is ready for the shorter formats of the game. has been done. If we compare the record of the left hand in Test cricket with the white ball format, it is like chalk and cheese.
The wicketkeeper-batsman was criticized in India’s recent white-ball series against South Africa. However, the 24-year-old put up a memorable performance in tough conditions in England, scoring 146 off 111 balls and 57 off 86 balls in the first innings in the second innings of the Edgbaston Test against England.
This amazing run machine, fourth Test century of the series for Joe Root. Best test batsman in the world at the moment #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/aypOmWLFTW
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) 5 July 2022
Pant’s latest heroism has once again ignited the debate about his failure to emulate his Test performance in the shorter formats.
The Uttarakhand-born cricketer has so far scored 2123 runs in 31 Tests with a solid average of 43.3 and a healthy strike rate of 72.66. His illustrious Test career also includes five centuries and 10 half-centuries. Interestingly, most of his hundreds have come in different parts of the world – England, Australia, South Africa – which are considered difficult for visiting batsmen.
In ODIs, he has scored 715 runs in 24 matches with five fifties at an average of 32.50 and a strike rate of 109.32, which makes his 50-over record quite well. But, in T20Is, Pant has scored only 741 runs in 48 matches with a poor average of 23.15 and most importantly – his strike rate – also only 123.91, which is quite strange considering his ability to play free-flowing strokes. Is.
His T20I figures certainly give the impression that Pant is certainly not the most destructive batsman in the shortest format of the game. A batting average below 25 and a strike rate of around 125 probably doesn’t do justice to his ‘special’ talent.
Pant, who has pleased and disappointed his fans almost equally, has proved himself at the highest level in Test cricket and the selectors were left with no option but to pick him as the first-choice wicketkeeper for India. Is. But in white-ball cricket, he is definitely running out of time.
With a plethora of wicket-keeping options in Ishan Kishan, KL Rahul, Sanju Samson and Dinesh Karthik, the Delhi Capitals skipper will have to play some match-winning knocks in the upcoming white-ball series for India, otherwise it will be tough for him. to make it to T20 World Cup in Australia.
Did his ego get the better of him? Is there any technical snag or mental block – Not sure about Pant’s illness in T20 cricket. However, some patterns have certainly emerged.
Be it during the T20I series against South Africa or in IPL 2022, on most occasions, Pant threw his wicket when things were going well for him and his team. And the most disappointing thing for the fans was that the batsman was getting stuck in the same way.
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Pant would certainly be aware of his mistakes, but his inability to come up with a counter plan is worrying and surprising, as the southpaw has an excellent series of strokes in its arsenal. Many experts are of the view that considering the youngster’s mindset and free-stroking approach to the challenges of modern-day cricket, there is no need for any serious improvement but he needs to choose his shots well.
Whatever his shortcomings, Pant needs to work closely with head coach Rahul Dravid and batting coach Vikram Rathor as fans would like to see a better version of the ‘talented’ batsman for the better health of Indian cricket.
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