Following a life-altering tragedy, Rishabh Pant, India’s premier wicketkeeper-batter, has staged an impressive comeback to competitive cricket. The Delhi Capitals skipper has garnered praise from all quarters for his outstanding performances with the bat and gloves in the ongoing IPL 2024.
Pant has emerged as one of the standout performers, amassing 413 runs in 11 matches at an impressive average of 41.30 and a strike-rate of 156.43. These figures are remarkable considering his absence from cricket for over a year. Notably, Pant has scored all these runs while batting in the middle order, a position he is expected to occupy for the Indian team in the T20 World Cup 2024.
Undoubtedly, Pant has been sensational with the bat, drawing attention for both positive and negative reasons. However, there is an overlooked aspect of his batting prowess that does not reflect in the statistics. While his overall batting average stands at 41, it drops significantly to 26.2 against spin bowling. In the current cricket landscape, where strike-rates hold more importance than averages, Pant’s strike-rate against spin in the IPL stands at 114.91, much lower than his scoring rate against pace, which is 188.
Against spinners, Pant takes approximately 9 deliveries to score a boundary in this year’s IPL, which is much higher than against the pacers (4).
He had a golden opportunity to enhance his stats against RR, facing the spin duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravichandran Ashwin. A mini-showdown unfolded between Pant and Chahal, who had previously gotten the better of him earlier in the season. Unfortunately, history repeated itself as Chahal swiftly sent Pant back to the pavilion. The DC skipper played a rash shot and found the fielder. There is an urgent need for him to temper his aggression and find new ways of scoring against skilled spinners.
This encounter with RR spinners might have been dismissed as an isolated incident if it were infrequent. However, it has become a recurring issue for Pant. Struggling against spinners has become a concerning trend for him. Since IPL 2020, Pant has averaged a modest 29.9 against spinners, having been dismissed 10 times.
In this IPL season, Pant has been dismissed by spinners in five out of his 12 innings, with all the dismissals coming against right-arm leg-spinners. Out of the 114 balls he has faced against spin, 40 have resulted in dot balls, contributing to his lower strike-rate against spin this year.
These numbers suggest that Pant has consciously adopted a cautious approach against spin bowling, especially right-arm leg-spin. Whether this is due to his confidence in facing quicker bowlers is unclear. However, it is evident that he is not as dominant against spin bowling as he once was.
Looking ahead to the T20 World Cup, the conditions are expected to favour slow pitches. India captain Rohit Sharma acknowledged this, particularly highlighting the likelihood of spin-friendly conditions in the West Indies. As a result, India have included four spinners in their squad. Pant’s recent struggles against spin could present a challenge for both the team and himself.
In contrast, Sanju Samson has excelled against spin bowling this season. He’s yet to be dismissed against the spinners while maintaining a strike-rate of 145.8.
Pant will be the first-choice wicket-keeping option for Team India in the T20 World Cup and is expected to play a crucial role batting at No. 5 or 6. However, his difficulties against spin could pose a threat to India’s dreams of winning silverware, especially considering that rival teams are closely observing the IPL 2024 to strategise for the mega event.
Pant is grappling with a significant and persistent issue against spin bowling, which could potentially impact the outcome of matches in the World Cup. He must address this weakness and refine his approach to spin bowling, especially with the in-form Samson breathing down his neck.