Before their departure to Sri Lanka for the One-day International (ODI) series, the chief selector of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Ajit Agarkar, remarked that they were trying their best to bring Rishabh Pant back in action across formats in slow and steady progress after the latter was on the sidelines for 15 months due to recovery from the fatal car accident.
Rishabh Pant made his first return in comparative cricket through the recent season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 before being included in the Indian squad for the Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 in the West Indies and the United States of America.
The left-handed batter looked in good touch, and his foot movement with the bat and gloves was excellent. He flew to Sri Lanka for the T20I series before being part of the Indian team for the final ODI game to end the tour. With the start of the home season with the red-ball format, the question stands whether he is going to make a comeback, and if so, who will be replaced?
Rishabh Pant’s return makes selection headache for Ajit Agarkar and Gautam Gambhir
The last red-ball game for the 26-year-old was a week before the end of the year 2022 in Mirpur when he faced Bangladesh. The start of 2023 wasn’t a good one for Rishabh Pant as his car met an accident near Hammadpur Jhal while returning home from Delhi.
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The lion’s share of the year ended in recovering from the injuries before he made his presence at the National Cricket Academy practice games before returning to the IPL.
Ajit Agarkar, in the last press meet, praised the batter and pointed out his skills, which would be quite valuable for the side when they trip to Australia for the five Test matches in the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25.
“Rishabh Pant is going to be a key player for us. We have seen what he can do in International cricket, he won the Test series in Australia almost with his bat. We want him to play all formats.” The former Indian all-rounder remarked.
In 33 games of the longest format since making his debut six years ago, the left-handed batter has collected 2271 runs at an average of 43.67 and a strike rate of 73.63, with the help of 11 half-centuries and five centuries, thanks to his best of unbeaten 159-run knock.
Before the national team’s next campaign of the two Tests against Bangladesh at home, Agarkar and co. are set to name players for the Duleep Trophy, due to begin on September 05. This will be a great preparation for the players for the Test season– which also included the three-match series to follow against New Zealand.
During the period Rishabh Pant was away from the Test squad, the Rohit Sharma-led side gave opportunities to KS Bharat and Ishan Kishan. The latter made a decent start against West Indies and was likely to be the first pick in South Africa. But because he pulled out citing personal reasons, KL Rahul served as the wicket-keeper batter.
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After Rahul’s injury and Bharat’s poor form with the bat, Dhruv Jurel made his debut for India at the backend of the home series against England at the start of 2024. The 23-year-old came out with flying colors to finish the three games with 190 runs at an average of 63.33.
Now, if the national selectors decide to bring back Rishabh Pant, then one of Jurel or Rahul would have to wait for his chance. The selection headache is a positive one for Agarkar and Co. but the decision needs to be sharp and steady.
