Sourav Ganguly: Rishabh Pant should be thrown into the deep end
Sourav Ganguly believes that rookie Rishabh Pant "should be thrown into the deep end" and asked to bat down the middle order than in his regular opener's slot. Ganguly has also said that Suresh Raina is a dangerous player in the T20 format and Virat Kohli should try to somehow fit him in.
Former India Under-19 star Rishabh Pant had caught the eye of the Indian selectors with a path-breaking Ranji Trophy season, in which he scored a staggering aggregate of 972 runs at an average of 81 for Delhi. His unbelievable strike rate of 107.28 only added to the already great resume.
Although Pant is being touted as an opener in the shortest format, Ganguly believes that Pant's explosive batting makes him a good option for India in the middle order.
Speaking exclusively to India Today, the former Indian skipper, said, "That's how young talents are unleashed and that's how I think Rishabh Pant should be thrown into the deep end. He is someone who doesn't hold back. You have seen his performances in Ranji Trophy, he just likes to hit the ball and I think he could be a good option in the middle order.”
Ganguly also added that this series is a great opportunity for India to test the youngsters.
"It's a great opportunity for allowing these youngsters to come and play. Once they come in, you will see how good they are. The selectors are speaking very highly of Rishabh Pant. I was sitting in the box the other day at the Eden Gardens speaking to one of the selectors and even some of the people who have watched him play say that some of the shots he played in the warm-up game against England were unbelievable.”
After sitting out of the New Zealand series due to a bout of viral fever, Suresh Raina has made a comeback to the national team and will see this series as an opportunity to resurrect his career. Ganguly called him a dangerous player in the shortest format of the game.
"Suresh Raina is a dangerous player in the T20 format and Virat Kohli will try to somehow fit him in. Raina can also give a bit of off-spin and bowl a couple of over. So, Kohli has got the options open. It has been a close series so far in the ODI format. Those three games could have gone either way till the last over. So, from that point of view, it will be a good series because England