Rishabh Pant last played an ODI for India in 2024, against Sri Lanka.
Though he has over 3700 runs in 52 Tests, Pant hasn’t been able to show similar talent and returns in white-ball cricket with 871 runs in 31 ODIs, with one century and 5 fifties, and 1209 runs in 76 T20Is with 3 fifties.
Pant was also involved in a near-fatal car accident in December 2022 that robbed him of nearly 18 months of cricket. That saw KL Rahul becoming the No. 1 choice for keeper-batter in ODIs for India, starting from the 2023 ICC World Cup. And now Ishan Kishan has become the backup keeper in white-ball cricket.
India left Pant out of its West Indies ODI team once again. Pant still hopes to play ODIs for India, so being named captain of the Rest of India squad for the Irani Cup match would have been a small reward.
“Definitely, you feel disappointed when something like this happens. But an athlete’s mindset allows you to feel that when there’s a setback, there is always a comeback. As an athlete, you have to deal with these things in your day-to-day life. People say this happened to me, that happened to me, but for an athlete, this is part and parcel of the game. But at the same time, you know how hard you’re working, and you’re clear in your path to maintain at this level,” Pant said on the Business of Sport podcast.
“To make it happen every day, there is a voice in your head that is very constant in a very disciplined manner. The only thing is it’s easier to pass opinions all the time, but at the same time, people have to wait for things to happen,” he added.
With Rahul, Ishan, and now Jurel advancing, Pant's chances of making a comeback appear increasingly slim. Dhruv Jurel is also included in India's team for the West Indies ODIs.
“I must make it happen because I feel I have not yet had the best opportunities to give my best, but international cricket is changing. Sometimes you have to wait for the chance and make things happen,” Pant added.