Gautam Gambhir opens up on Rishabh Pant’s removal as Test vice-captain

When the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced India’s squad for the one-off Test match against Afghanistan, one of the major talking points was Rishabh Pant’s removal as vice-captain. KL Rahul replaced him in the role, with Shubman Gill continuing as captain.

This announcement was made during the latter stages of the Indian Premier League (IPL), where Pant was struggling as the captain of the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and also as a batter. While the wicketkeeper-batter has not been able to do justice to his potential in white-ball cricket as yet, he has been one of India’s finest players in the longest format.

The 28-year-old has scored 3476 runs in 49 Tests at an average of 42.91 and a strike rate of 74.23. Meanwhile, his ODI average is 33.50 and it drops to 23.25 in T20Is. It has been almost two years since Pant last played white-ball cricket for India.

However, he averaged an impressive 48.38 last year in Tests after playing seven matches and scoring 629 runs at a strike rate of 77.75. This included two centuries and four half-centuries. However, this wasn’t enough for Pant to retain vice-captaincy in the red-ball format.

Addressing Rishabh Pant’s removal as Test vice-captain, head coach Gautam Gambhir said the batter has the backing from the team management but needs to read the game situation better.

“We don’t want Rishabh Pant to change but international cricket demands players to respect match situations,” Gambhir said.

When Pant plays well, he takes the attack to the opposition bowlers and changes the game in a very quick time. His dominant batting has given opposition captains sleepless nights for sure. However, there have been instances when Pant has been dismissed in inexplicable ways.

During the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground) Test between India and Australia, Pant attempted a scoop from outside off to the leg-side off Scott Boland, only to be caught at deep third off the leading edge. “Stupid, stupid, stupid,” was Sunil Gavaskar’s immediate reaction as Pant’s unorthodox shot cost him his wicket at an important stage of the match.

It will be interesting to see how Pant plays in the only Test against Afghanistan, which gets underway on Saturday, June 6, at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur.