In his first stint as Team India captain, Rishabh Pant is yet to make a positive impression. India have lost both the T20I matches under his leadership against South Africa and a series defeat is looming large as things stand.
Wasim Jaffer has been critical of Pant’s captaincy and believes that he still has a long way to go as the leader of the side. He also needs to work on his mental toughness and stop making silly errors. Jaffer believes that Pant ends up panicking in difficult situations and that can only improve with experience.
His remarks arrived after Team India ended up losing the second consecutive match at the hands of the Proteas at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack. The Men in Blue were a no show with the bat and ended up scoring a below-par total. Although Bhuvneshwar Kumar picked up wickets regularly to pull India back into the game, South Africa completed the run-chase quite comfortably once again.
They inflicted a four-wicket defeat on the hosts to take a 2-0 lead in the series. Heinrich Klaasen made quick work of the Indian spinners and slammed 81 off 46 deliveries to take his team past the finish line in the penultimate over.
During an interaction with ESPNCricinfo, Wasim Jaffer was asked whether Rishabh Pant changes his plans and strategies quite often. Responding with affirmation, the former Indian opener replied, “Yes, we saw something similar in the IPL as well. I feel the more he captains, the better he’ll get. But, yes, at this stage, I think when the match gets tight, he panics a bit.”
His captaincy has come under intense scrutiny following the consecutive losses against South Africa. His utilization of bowlers leaves a lot to desire. In the first match, Pant barely used Yuzvendra Chahal and he didn’t get to complete his full quota of overs. In the second T20I in Cuttack, he was guilty of relying upon Chahal and second spinner Axar Patel way too much when the match situation demanded proper fast-bowling strategy.
Even in his first full-season as IPL captain, Pant struggled with Delhi Capitals and failed to find the right balance between attacking and conservative cricket. Although he got better with time, his bowling changes, errors with DRS calls, as well as dropped catches made life harder for him as captain and DC failed to qualify for the playoffs of IPL 2022.
