Rishabh Pantâs performances in red ball cricket overshadow those in limited overs, analyses Harsha Bhogle
Harsha Bhogle has stated that though the hype around Rishabh Pantâs explosive batting has made most believe he is more suited for white-ball cricket, his numbers in Tests are by far more impressive. He has also stated that the youngster is still a work in progress but is an exciting talent.
With Mahendra Singh Dhoni approaching the twilight of his career and the national team in search of a wicketkeeper-batsmen to replace him, the rise of Rishabh Pant has caught a lot of eyes. He first came into the spotlight when playing for the country in the U-19 World Cup three years ago and since then his climb towards the top has been spectacular. From being the first wicket-keeper from India to score a Test century in England to being named ICCâs emerging player of the year in 2018, he certainly looks to be one for the future.
However, even though his record boasts of him hitting runs at a high strike rate, his most impactful innings have come in red-ball cricket. He has two centuries and as many half-centuries in the all-whites for India in just 15 matches, with an average of approximately 50.
âWhen you analyse him over the three formats, something very interesting comes up straight away. You look at Rishabh Pant and you go, âshort format player, explosive, he can hit the ball out of the ground.â But his numbers in long-form cricket are by some distance better than any other format. He was in ICCâs top 20 for batsmen alone, very few Indian wicket keepers have managed to get there. There was Farokh Engineer, there was MS Dhoni but Rishabh Pant has attracted attention for the way he plays,â Harsh Bhogle said in a segment for Cricbuzz.
The left-handed middle-order batsman has an equally impressive first-class record, with six centuries and 10 50s at an average of 53. Accumulating to nearly 2,500 runs in 49 innings.
âEven in first-class cricket, which is another indicator of long form cricket, he has got six hundreds, and he gets those hundreds very quickly indeed, which leads me to believe that Pant could well prove the âSehwagâ effect in long form cricket which is, considering the field is in, his shots get more mileage in this format of the game,â renowned analyst Bhogle added.
His domestic T20 record is no worse, with an average in the mid-30s and a strike rate of 160-plus. However, when it comes to the 14 T20s he has played for India, his strike rate column reads 103 and his average a modest 26. Considering he is a mere 21-year-old, he has a lot of time to improve his first big test will come in the upcoming tour of the Carribean.
âIn T20s, he has done well and his numbers are great indeed but you need to transpose them. When you look at those numbers alongside T20Is, there is suddenly a big drop in both strike rate and average. He is a free spirit, Rishabh Pant, so maybe as the pressure gets to him a little bit more and his performance drops. In T20s, he is still very much a work in progress as he is in 50 overs cricket nut thereâs something very exciting about him,â Bhogle concluded on the matter.