Rishabh Pant played an exciting knock of 61 in 33 balls in India second innings in Sydney Test.
However, Ashwin also stated that Pant’s repertoire of shots is risky and that this prevents him from reaching his full potential.
"We have to tell him properly what he has to do if he has to bat solidly or bat with intent. He hasn't scored a lot of runs, but he didn't play like someone without runs. He has a lot of time on his hands. Rishabh Pant is yet to realize his fullest potential.
He has all the shots—the reverse sweep, the slog sweep, everything—but the problem is that all these shots are high-risk shots. With his defense, he will surely score runs every game if he faces 200 balls. The point is finding that middle ground. If he combines all of it, he will score 100 runs every game. He has to find that middle game,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
In the first innings of the SCG Test, Pant scored 40 runs off 98 balls, while in the second innings, he scored 61 runs off 33 balls. Despite Pant's tendency to play big shots, Ashwin was not surprised by the keeper's tenacious innings in the first essay.
"I have always grown up hearing that you have to fight it out. In Sydney, he played two different knocks in one single game. He got hit everywhere and scored a 40; it will be the least spoken innings of Rishabh Pant. It is very unfair. In the second innings, he scored a swashbuckling fifty, earning him a lot of praise. Everyone forgot that first innings and praised him for the second knock," Ashwin pointed out.
Regarding his defensive style, Ashwin asserted that Pant is one of the best. Additionally, he appeared to believe that the Indian, Steve Smith, and Joe Root are among the top hitters of the last seven years when batting has gotten "significantly difficult and averages have decreased."
"We must realize that Rishabh Pant rarely gets out playing a defense. He's got one of the best defenses in world cricket. Defense has become challenging; he has the best defense with a soft hand. I have bowled to him a lot in the nets; he's not gotten out; he doesn't get an edge; he doesn't get LBW; he has the best defense. I have tried telling it to him. One opinion about Rishabh was that he plays a lot of shots; he has to fight it out in Test cricket," Ashwin said.
"Test cricket is playing according to the situation. In the last seven years, batting has become significantly difficult, from 2018 to 2025. But, in the WTC cycle, batting averages have decreased. Joe Root is in his own zone. Of course, Williamson... Smith has rediscovered again. What we realized is, Rishabh Pant has played in these times,” he added.
The 38-year-old Ashwin, who announced his retirement from international cricket in the middle of the BGT, stated that he will still play cricket.
"It was about me as an India cricketer; that's over. But Ashwin as a cricketer is not over yet. I feel that there is still some distance for that. I feel that I can talk about my personal decisions over a period of time. In fact, I want to document my entire story as an Indian cricketer,” Ashwin stated.
(Times of India inputs)