Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir talked about Rishabh Pant losing his Test vice-captaincy ahead of the one-off Test between India and Afghanistan. This match will be played on June 6 in New Chandigarh.
One of the biggest news stories after the squad announcement was Rishabh Pant being removed from his Test vice-captaincy post, which was handed to experienced KL Rahul.
This came after a poor outing by Rishabh Pant as captain for Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL 2026 and his performance as captain of India in the one Test he captained against South Africa.
Gautam Gambhir stated, on Friday, that Rishabh Pant has not been ordered to alter his aggressive style of batting in Test cricket, but that it is "important to play according to the situation".
“Responsibility is only to play for India. Everything else – captaincy, vice-captaincy, and so on – is a by-product. When you play for India, you don’t think of these things from the first day. You think about doing well for India. So, going from one post to the other is all just a by-product. Ultimately, everyone is judged on performance. Whether it be me or anyone in the support staff or any player. Ultimately, that is what international cricket is all about,” Gambhir told reporters in New Chandigarh on Friday.
He then talked about Rishabh Pant and stated that he has not been told to abandon his natural game but to take responsibility with the bat.
“As far as Rishabh is concerned, we will expect him to be the way he is. It’s not like we will tell him you have to change your game. But it is important to play according to the situation in international cricket. It is important to create situations. Thinking about what the team needs in a certain situation and playing your shots accordingly. But no player has been told to abandon their natural game and play differently. Whether it be Tests, ODIs, or T20Is. Ultimately, it is about making runs and taking wickets. Make runs whichever way you want, but it is very important to read the situation of the game,” he said.
(PTI inputs)
