Veteran Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik became the latest cricketer to advocate the idea of Rishabh Pant opening the innings in T20I cricket. He said that the Indian cricket team management is currently figuring out the batting position for Pant in T20Is, except for No. 5.
Karthik further went on to say that while people must accept a few failures from the talented Pant when it comes to stroke play, no one can argue that the young keeper will do an amazing job once he gets the proper batting position in the T20I set-up, which the team management is working on.
Well, Pant has not yet met the expectations in T20I cricket with the bat despite cementing his place in the ODI and Test teams, and many have been given the same reason for the lack of clarity in his role.
However, in the absence of the regular openers, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahu, the left-handed batter can be given the opener’s role in the three-match T20I series in New Zealand.
Dinesh Karthik told Cricbuzz: “We know one thing for sure, Rishabh Pant's ability to play shots. And when the field is up, he can go gung-ho in the powerplay so we can give him the opportunity to open. Interestingly, stats also reflect that his strike rate is highest when he opens. He likes the field up, he likes to take on bowlers and put them under pressure.”
He added, “I think it will be very interesting to see where they bat Rishabh Pant. Big question for Team India is how they will be using Rishabh Pant and I think we will be seeing him at the top of the order and trying to give him enough balls to showcase his skills. He is second to none when it comes to stroke play and has baffled a lot of international bowlers of high pedigree. We need to embrace the fact that there will be a few failures from him, but when he gets going, he is a terrific player to watch.”
Speaking about Pant’s batting position in T20Is, Karthik noted: “I think Rishabh Pant has sealed his spot in Test cricket and to a large extent in ODI cricket as well. In T20s, he bats in a different position for his franchise and comes in a different spot in the Indian team and they are trying to figure out where to fit him.”
He signed off by saying, “When you have Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya, where do you fit in a Rishabh Pant? We do need a left-hander, but where do we play him? We know what Kohli does at No.3. Let's not even talk about Suryakumar Yadav, he's the best in the business in the world. Immediately we come down to Pant at No.5. Do we want him to bat there or let's see if we can give him the opportunity to open.”
(With Cricbuzz Inputs)
