Picture Credit: Twitter
India’s squad for the T20 World Cup has been announced. All the obvious names have been picked for the biennial event that will take place in Australia this time. Rishabh Pant has also been included in the 15-member squad and is the lone left-handed batter in the top seven. This means that Pant is surely going to be a part of the playing XI.
But slotting in Pant in the middle order did not augur too well for the team at the recently concluded Asia Cup 2022. Pant looked out of touch and his shot selection was also questionable. The wicketkeeper batter has looked strangled when it comes to batting in the middle overs. With Pant struggling, the pressure passes on to the forthcoming batters and the team often finishes 15-20 runs short of what they can post on the board.
To tackle this issue, former India cricketer Wasim Jaffer has come up with a suggestion for the Indian team management. Jaffer has suggested promoting Rishabh Pant to the top of the order rather than making him bat in the middle order. The former cricketer-turned-expert has urged to Rohit Sharma to take a punt on Pant, just like MS Dhoni did with Rohit Sharma.
Jaffer shared a tweet on Tuesday wherein he suggested opening the innings with KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant. He suggested that Rohit Sharma can bat at No.4 considering he has done it for quite a while (for his IPL franchise Mumbai Indians).
"I still think opening the inns is where we could see the best of Pant in T20. Provided Rohit is ok to bat @ 4. MS took a punt on Rohit before CT in 2013, and the rest is history. Time for Rohit to take a punt on Pant. KL, Pant, VK, Rohit, Sky would be my top five," Jaffer tweeted.
I still think opening the inns is where we could see the best of Pant in T20. Provided Rohit is ok to bat @ 4. MS took a punt on Rohit before CT in 2013, and the rest is history. Time for Rohit to take a punt on Pant. KL, Pant, VK, Rohit, Sky would be my top five. #INDvAUS #T20WC
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) September 13, 2022
Notably, Pant has not opened innings in T20Is on too many occasions. On the two occasions he has done, Pant has scored 27 runs at a strike rate of 135. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul have been doing it for a while now.
