Former cricketer Saba Karim has issued an ultimatum to out-of-form India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant about performing in the upcoming ODIs against Bangladesh or else the team management should drop him.
India will begin their month-long tour of Bangladesh with the three ODIs starting on December 4 in Mirpur followed by two Test matches.
But it is Rishabh Pant's lack of runs in white-ball cricket that is hogging the limelight at the moment. Saba Karim believes that the Bangladesh ODI series could be the last one for the 25-year-old to prove his credentials and if he fails to do that, the Indian team management should look for his alternatives.
“I'll go ahead with Rishabh Pant. I want to see how he performs in three matches in Bangladesh. Decide his batting position and play him at No. 5. If he doesn't perform, look at some alternatives. It could be Ishan Kishan or Sanju Samson,” Saba Karim said on India News.
In the T20I and ODI series against New Zealand that concluded on Wednesday, the left-hand attacking batter failed to get going, ending the tour with only 42 runs in four innings across the two formats. He scored a disappointing 10, 6, 11, and 15 runs in his four knocks against the Kiwis.
Rishabh Pant's lean patch with the bat in white-ball cricket has led to his severe criticism from several quarters, including from many former cricketers. Some of them have even questioned his place in India's limited-overs side.
Among the prominent ones to call for his removal from Team India in the ODI and T20I formats are Krishnamachari Srikkanth, Aakash Chopra, and Virat Kohli‘s childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma.
“Maybe you can give him (Pant) a break and tell him ‘just wait a bit, come and play in India', they haven't handled him well. Are you going to wait for a couple of matches before giving him a break or remove him after one or two games?” Krishnamachari Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel.
“Yes, Rishabh Pant is not utilising the chances he's getting. I am very disappointed – ennada Pant-u (what is this Pant)?,” he added.
“You are messing up these chances. If you smash into such matches, it'll be good right? The World Cup is coming up. Already a lot of people are saying that Pant isn't scoring so it'll add fuel to the fire,” Krishnamachari Srikkanth stated.
“He's going to put pressure on himself. He needs to reinvent himself. He has to do something right – stand and play for a while and then go for it… He's throwing his wicket away all the time,” Krishnamachari Srikkanth pointed out.
Identical views were shared by former India opener Aakash Chopra who said that while there was little doubt about Rishabh Pant's talent, he was yet to fulfill his potential.
He further stated that the left-hander was yet to shine in limited-overs cricket and soon the Indian team management will have to take a call regarding his future in national ODI and T20I sides.
“As of now everyone believes that he (Pant) is a special player, extremely talented, is an X-factor kind of cricketer, but he hasn't lived up to the reputation in white-ball cricket thus far,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
“In Tests, today also Rishabh Pant is not only India's but the world's best wicketkeeper-batter. Not many top-order batters have played more dynamic and impactful knocks than him, forget about a keeper. But the truth is that he has not done that good a job in ODIs and T20s considering the opportunities he has got,” said the former India opener.
Virat Kohli's childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma didn't have kind words for Rishabh Pant, who has not been among the runs in recent days.
“Rishabh Pant's on-field performances have not been satisfactory at all. It is very unfortunate, as he has been given a long rope by the team management. We all know how Virat Kohli showed great faith in Pant during his captaincy. And even after that, he kept on getting many chances. While he has done quite well in red-ball cricket, he has failed to deliver in white-ball cricket,” Rajkumar Sharma said.
“There is no harm in going back and playing domestic cricket when you are not in form. It is always better to work on your basics if you can see that you are struggling in terms of stroke-making. He should play domestic cricket and then make a comeback to the national side,” Rajkumar Sharma suggested.
Coming back to Saba Karim, the former India wicketkeeper claimed that Rohit Sharma's biggest challenge during the upcoming Bangladesh series will be his form. The India captain performed poorly in last month's T20 World Cup in Australia and will be eager to make amends in Bangladesh.
“The biggest challenge for Rohit Sharma will be his batting. Your captaincy will automatically improve if you continue to perform. It’s important to score runs,” Saba Karim concluded.
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