India legend Sunil Gavaskar made his choice for the first-pick keeper in the Men in Blue XI for their first T20 World Cup 2024 match against Ireland on June 5 in New York.
Pant and Samson have both been named wicketkeepers for India's side in the present tournament. Pant, on the other hand, started the tournament on a high note, scoring a half-century against Bangladesh in the warm-up game.
The southpaw hit 53 from 32 balls as he batted at number three, smashing four fours and as many sixes. On the other hand, Samson struggled with the bat, scoring only 1 (6) when he began with Rohit Sharma.
Notably, both Pant and Samson were in excellent form during the recently ended Indian Premier League 2024. Pant finished as his team's leading run scorer, with 446 runs from 13 innings at an average of 40.54 and a strike rate of 155.40, including three fifties.
Samson, on the other side, was the tournament's fifth-highest run scorer, with 531 runs in 15 innings at an average of 48.27 and a strike rate of 153.46, including five fifties. However, the RR captain did not make a noteworthy effort in the tournament's final four games, scoring 15, 18, 17, and 10 runs.
After the warmup match, Sunil Gavaskar said that India is likely to start with Pant as he’s a better wicketkeeper than Samson. The former cricketer also said that the recent string of low scores for Samson further shifts the balance in Pant’s favor.
"I think simply because if you compare the wicketkeeping abilities, then Rishabh Pant is a better wicket-keeper than Samson. We’re not talking about batting here, the batting aspect also comes into play. But, Rishabh Pant in the last few matches has batted well. On the other hand, Sanju Samson started the IPL season superbly, scored runs at will, hitting the ball to all corners of the ground," said Gavaskar on Star Sports.
Gavaskar suggested that Samson's inability to hit significant runs in the latter stages of the IPL 2024, as well as his warm-up game against Bangladesh, could tip the scales in Pant's favor.
"In the last two three matches [of IPL 2024], he didn’t quite get runs. So this was an opportunity for him actually, the match against Bangladesh. If he had scored about 50-60, then there would have been no question, but I do feel that the Indian selection committee will look at having Rishabh Pant as the keeper," Gavaskar added.
Pant seized the opportunity with a half-century in the warm-up fixture. The southpaw also kept the wickets during the game which clearly makes him a first-choice of the team management for the wicketkeeper’s slot.
