Rishabh Pant was not included in India’s T20I squad for the New Zealand T20Is and might not find a place in the ODI squad as well, with KL Rahul being the first-choice keeper and Ishan Kishan and Dhruv Jurel doing extremely well in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26.

He was part of India’s ODI squad for the South Africa series but warmed the bench as KL Rahul led the Men in Blue to a 2-1 series win.

Despite his innate ability to score quickly and influence the pace of a game, Pant has struggled to provide consistent performances in limited-overs settings, raising questions about his role and future in the shorter formats.

Pant, who was a member of India's T20 World Cup-winning side last year, last played in the format in July. However, he is left out of the India squad that will compete in the T20 World Cup 2026 at home.

Former India cricketer Deep Dasgupta argued that Rishabh Pant himself should clarify his role in T20 cricket, querying if he sees himself as a top-order hitter, a middle-order option, or a finisher in the format.

"In T20 cricket, is he a top-three batter? Or is he a middle-order batter, or is he a finisher? What's he? He needs to answer these questions," Dasgupta told India Today.

He continued by outlining his thoughts on the batting positions that would enable the left-hander to maximize his potential in both T20Is and ODIs, as well as where he thinks Rishabh Pant fits best across formats.

"As far as I am concerned, he is a top-three batter in T20I cricket. In ODIs, he is a good No. 4 or No. 5," he added.

Dasgupta also talked about Pant’s form, underlining the need for the Delhi batter to keep batting regularly and piling on runs to regain rhythm and clarity in white-ball cricket.

"I think he just needs to bat and bat. He got an excellent 70-odd for Delhi. He just needs to keep scoring runs, playing white-ball cricket wherever he gets the opportunity—domestic or otherwise—and learn his trade, learn what suits him," he added.