Rishabh Pant is all set for an IPL return. While he may not keep wicket just yet, despite posting a video of him getting ready behind the stumps, he is expected to bat and captain the Delhi Capitals in the IPL.
This, may I say, is the best news for Indian cricket. No Indian keeper, and I say this keeping even the legendary MS Dhoni in mind, has had the kind of impact Pant had in Test cricket.
Pant is a once-in-a-generation cricketer. When you read the team sheet and you see Rishabh Pant at No. 7, there is a kind of awe. He can come in and change a game in an hour, and has done so multiple times for India. No other keeper can have the same kind of impact, and that’s where India have missed Pant the most. If it was Jasprit Bumrah with the ball, it was Pant with the bat and behind the stumps that India missed the most in the WTC final. More so because it was Australia, a team against whom Pant has a kind of psychological edge. In Sydney and Brisbane in 2020-21, it was Pant who made the world sit up and take notice. He was the one who led the Indian charge, challenged Australia and subsequently beat them.
🚨BREAKING
Delhi Capitals are gearing up to welcome back Rishabh Pant for #IPL2024 but sources have confirmed that we are likely to see the dynamic southpaw more as an impact player in the tournament.@CricSubhayan @ThumsUpOfficial #RishabhPant pic.twitter.com/1D0UIZUfFH
— RevSportz (@RevSportz) December 11, 2023
At the moment, the opposition start to fancy their chances the moment the Indian keeper walks in to bat. While Dhruv Jurel looked very good in Rajkot, neither KS Bharat nor Jurel evoke any fear in the opposition. With Pant, it was different. He is as good and as impactful as anyone else in the batting order, and as long as he is out there, no total is safe. Centuries in Australia, England and South Africa – something even the great VVS Laxman didn’t manage – are ample proof of that.
That’s why the return of Pant is the best news for India. If he is able to make it back for the IPL, chances are that he will be ready in time for the Australia tour in December. And needless to say, he is the one player Australia wouldn’t want to see travel down under. He has an excellent record against the world champions and could be key if India are to win a third consecutive series in Australia.
Speak to Sourav Ganguly, and he says one thing about Steve Waugh’s Australian side that demoralised the opposition. “You have picked five or six wickets and have started to feel that now you are in control,” said Ganguly. “That’s when you see Adam Gilchrist walk out. It could become a mental thing.”
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It is similar with Pant. When you think that you have got Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli (when he is back and playing) and Ravindra Jadeja, and have India on the ropes, you see Pant walk out. That’s when you know there is no respite. That’s what India missed so much in 2023 and would be desperate to see back in late 2024.
Let me also say that Pant the batter is good enough to make the team even if he is unable to keep wickets. First, he is a left-hand batter, and second, he is a match-winner. So even if India have to play Jurel in Australia, Pant the batter will add much meat to the Indian middle order. That’s where his return gives India maximum hope. If he can last the IPL, he is clearly on the mend and another six months could see him ready for Test cricket.
When I think back to the WTC final, where India were without Pant and Bumrah, you knew there was no question of replacing those two. Bharat is no Pant, and Australia could get away against a depleted side. With Kohli, Bumrah and Pant all back for the tour in November-December, it could well be the most anticipated Test series of the year, a summit clash of sorts before the WTC final is actually played. For the moment though, all the focus is on Pant’s return to competitive cricket.
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