Former Pakistan leg-spinner Danish Kaneria feels Test cricket is Rishabh Pant’s game. Pant has disappointed with his performances in white-ball formats however he has taken Test cricket like fish to water.
The left-hander has already played some match-winning knocks in his young Test career. Pant has scored 2130 runs in 32 Test matches at an average of 43.47 and a strike rate of 72.55.
Thus, Pant has the skills to turn the match on its head in the red-ball versions and he has done a fine job for the national team.
Pant has been able to deliver consistently in Test matches and his record speaks for himself. Ergo, Pant will look to continue the good show in two Test matches against Bangladesh. Pant has had two fantastic tours of Australia and has scored centuries in South Africa and England.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Kaneria said: “Rishabh Pant is a world-class player in red-ball cricket. He has proved it not only in India but also Australia. He has made us believe that Test cricket is his game.”
“I think we’ll witness blistering batting from him. In Tests, he is one of the finest wicketkeeper batters. The way he bats and changes the game. His intent is very good.”
Kaneria feels the series against Bangladesh is also important for Cheteshwar Pujara, who hasn’t been at his absolute best in 2022. The veteran batter has scored 187 runs in three Test matches in 2022 at an average of 31.16.
“This series is also very important for Cheteshwar Pujara. He scored runs in England before his comeback. India need him to score runs.”
KL Rahul won the toss and decided to bat first in the first Test match at Chhatogram. India were 85-3 at the Lunch break on the opening day with Rishabh Pant and Cheteshwar Pujara at the crease.
India’s updated squad for Bangladesh Tests: KL Rahul (C), Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara (VC), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (WK), KS Bharat (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Navdeep Saini, Saurabh Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat
