Former Indian legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar believes Rishabh Pant should open for India in white-ball cricket. Pant has grabbed his opportunities in the Test format while batting at number five and six but he hasn’t played up to his potential in the limited-overs format.
The southpaw scored a fine knock of 146 runs in the first innings of the fifth Test match against England to help the visitors post 416 runs on the board. The left-hander then scored another fine good knock of 57 runs in the second dig.
After his impressive show, Pant has vaulted to number five in the ICC Test match rankings. On the other hand, Pant has failed to be consistent in the white-ball formats, which has been surprising to note.
The attacking batter has scored 715 runs in 24 ODI matches at an average of 32.5 whereas he has amassed 741 runs in 48 T20I matches at an average of 23.16 and a below-par strike rate of 124.12.
Gavaskar said that Adam Gilchrist did a fine job for Australia as an opener in 50-overs format after he grabbed his opportunity in the lower middle order in the Test format and Pant can also do the same.
“Not a bad option at all. Look at what Adam Gilchrist did for Australia in white-ball cricket. He used to bat at No.6 or 7 in Test cricket but while opening in white-ball cricket he was destructive. Maybe someone like Rishabh Pant can be equally destructive, he will get that many more overs to play,” Gavaskar told Sports Today.
“We have been talking about him as a finisher but then he comes in there, starts slamming the ball and straight away gets out. Here, he will have the awareness that he doesn’t have to go bang bang from the first ball. He will have a few deliveries to get used to the pace and movement. In England, there will be a little more movement even with the white ball than anywhere else. That can actually work in India’s favour,” Gavaskar added.
There is no doubt that Pant has the skills to turn the match on its head and he would want to carry his Test form to the white-ball formats. Pant has scored 2123 runs in 31 Test matches at an average of 43.33 and he has already played some match-winning knocks in his young Test career.
