After losing the first two matches of the T20I series against South Africa, Team India would be satisfied with the 2-2 result in the end.
But, one thing that stood out during the series was the form of captain Rishabh Pant. Pant became the captain at the last moment after KL Rahul was ruled out of the series due to an injury.
Pant, who is a very good batter in the Test format, has been inconsistent in the limited-overs format, especially in the T20 cricket. His recent performance against South Africa has been poor.
PANT’S POOR FORM
Pant, in four matches against the Proteas could score only 58 runs. Thanks to the good form of Dinesh Karthik, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya and Shreyas Iyer, the team did score runs.
In the four matches, he scored 29, 5, 6, 17. The right handed batter could score at average 30.91 runs in 14 matches he played in IPL 2022.
With his dismal form ahead of T20I cup scheduled to be held in November in Australia, there are strong chances that he might not get a spot in the playing XI as he has two strong replacements in Dinesh Karthik and KL Rahul.
Former Indian cricketer Waseem Jaffer also commented on Pant’s retention in the squad saying that it might not be a certainty. The former cricketer said, "The way Pant has played recently, I won't call him a certainty for the T20 WC squad. Once Rahul comes back, he walks into the side. He is a wicket keeper as well. If Karthik is certain to play, he is also a wicketkeeper."
A CAPTAIN IN BACKUP
Not just the wicket keeper, in Hardik Pandya India has backup captain in the T20Is In fact, Pandya, is also leading the T20 squad against Ireland later this month. Pant has been kept out of the squad while Sanju Samson and Rahul Tripathi have been included in the 17-member team.