Former India cricketer Syed Kirmani believes that if wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant wants to play all forms for the country again, he must control his flamboyance, increase his physical fitness, and deal with his “vulnerable” personality.
The 28-year-old Pant, who was praised as a natural all-format player, has only played in Test matches in the past two years despite playing T20 cricket in the Indian Premier League.
“Rishabh has to work hard on his physical fitness, consistency and temperament. His temperament is very vulnerable, turbulent. No player can say ‘I am a born hitter, I have to hit every ball’. You might have that particular day when you get rid of every ball you want to hit. But you have to look into the circumstances, what format you are playing, and what the team wants you to do,” Kirmani told PTI in an exclusive interview.
“Wherever Rishabh Pant is selected, he has to show his physical fitness, he has to show his performance. He has to show his consistency is better than the other wicketkeepers competing with him. That’s it.”
Pant is the “most gifted and talented” player to come out of Indian cricket, according to Kirmani, “after Sachin Tendulkar and before Vaibhav Sooryavanshi”.
“When Rishabh Pant broke into the Indian side, I thought he was the most talented or gifted after Sachin Tendulkar. And I considered him the most talented until this new boy (Vaibhav) Sooryavanshi emerged. But now when I see him playing only Tests, I am quite baffled,” said the former wicketkeeper-batter.
He claimed that while coaches and mentors can help a cricketer find the proper path and strategy, the player is ultimately responsible for his performance and cannot hold anyone accountable if he fails.
“The coaches, the mentors who are around, their duty is to guide and show the player the right direction and approach. Before a match starts, they can only guide the players,” said 76-year-old Kirmani who played 88 Tests and 49 ODIs between 1976 and 1986.
“You can’t blame anybody else. It has to be the player all the way, whether he or she shows a good form or not. Nobody can take the blame except the player himself,” he observed.
After suffering severe injuries in a horrible car accident in December 2022, Pant made a comeback 15 months later in IPL 2024.
“It’s the unfortunate accident which he went through. In that process, all other wicketkeepers in the making came up one after another. They showed consistency in Test matches and ODIs wherever they were selected. They showed their ability to perform when it is required.
“So, in that process, Rishabh Pant lost his little ground there during the recuperation of his accident. Now, he faces tremendous competition,” the 1983 World Cup winner said.
“After the near fatal accident…it was a huge comeback for him. And he’s taking some time. He is not showing that kind of consistency he had shown earlier in all the three formats,” he remarked.
According to Kirmani, there is fierce rivalry for spots in the Indian team across all formats, and not only Pant—all players must perform at their highest level in order to be chosen.
“There is fierce competition among players, be it a medium pacer, spinner or a batter or a wicketkeeper. Now, the selection committee is having a huge problem in selection of wicketkeeper-batter or batter who can keep wickets. Rishabh is back, KL Rahul is there, Dhruv Jurel, Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson is there. They are in the ODIs and T20s. There is fierce competition among these five players,” Kirmani said.
“Every player has to be on their toes, not only Rishabh Pant, because there is so much talent and in all these wicketkeepers who are in the frame. So, Rishabh has to be on his toes all the times,” he added.
“You’ve got to consider that particular player’s consistency and physical fitness for selection. That’s the way to select that player. The current breed of wicketkeepers and batters are concentrating more on their batting prowess because if they score and provide significant batting support, they advance. They are concentrating more on their batting ability,” he concluded.
