Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain Faf du Plessis believes that Rishabh Pant will be the player under the most scrutiny heading into IPL 2026. The Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper will look to bounce back after a below-par campaign last year.
Pant, who became the most expensive player in IPL history last season following his ₹27 crore move to LSG, will be expected to prove his worth by leading the team from the front.
Last year, Pant amassed a total of 269 runs in 14 matches at a modest average of 24.45. Although he registered a century in the team’s final game against RCB, his performances lacked consistency and confidence throughout the tournament.
“For me, Rishabh Pant is probably the player in the IPL who is under the most pressure this season,” du Plessis told broadcasters. “Some players flourish under the pressure of a high price tag, while others don’t. I think last season was a really tough one for him. The team struggled, and he also struggled for runs in the way that he batted. So, there is all that pressure coming into the season, along with the expectations of what the team is going to do.”
Speaking about the challenges ahead, du Plessis said, “With a batting-heavy team, 00ppcaptain, scoring runs is your first job. So, if he is scoring runs as captain, it takes pressure off in the first instance. But then there is a second instance, which is the overall team performance. And last year, both of those things had big red crosses against them.”
More importantly, LSG struggled as a team and failed to make their presence felt, raising questions around team balance and leadership choices. As captain, Pant will have the dual responsibility of guiding his team to favourable results while also rediscovering his batting rhythm in this format.
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