Rishabh Pant was out on a duck when India needed him to build a partnership with Virat Kohli at the other end.
India's wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant left his admirers disappointed once again with a poor shot selection in the third ODI against South Africa. Pant has proved his worth time and again, but his way of dismissal has always attracted criticism.
In the second ODI, the youngster played a handy knock to bail India out of a tough situation. They were expecting a similar mature innings from him in the final ODI, but Pant ended up playing a rash shot and got out on a duck.
Virat Kohli, who was at the other end, was disappointed with the untimely dismissal of Pant. Even former India batter Aakash Chopra and ex-South Africa pacer Dale Steyn have called out the southpaw for his irresponsible shot.
"Reckless. Irresponsible. Letting the team down. We all know Rishabh is who Rishabh is. But then if you were to compare this shot with another shot, I would say what he played at Johannesburg - he just ran down the pitch to Kagiso Rabada – India had already lost wickets.
"This is exactly the same replica of what he did there. And there are no excuses. From how to wow, to how to wow, this is what Rishabh Pant has been dishing out. When he plays beautifully, that's the wow. But very often you are also saying… 'how did you do that Rishabh?'," Chopra said on the Byju's Cricket Live Show on Star Sports.
"Yes, he is 25. We should have a lot of time for him but people – Rahul Dravid, KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma will have to have conversations with him that you will have to get better with your shot selections and two things are non-negotiable. Respect the conditions, respect the team situation. If you don't do that, it's never good."
Steyn, who had also posted a tweet after Pant's dismissal, said that he is a fan of Pant but his shots sometimes are beyond understanding. "I am actually a big fan of Rishabh Pant. I love the way he plays. He's a very exciting cricketer and it kind of grinds me as an opposition. And I look at him and pinch myself, 'what are you doing.
"Why would you do that?' He did that in the Test matches. Had he batted another five overs there, things would have been different," he said.
(With Star Sports Inputs)