NEW DELHI: Spin legend Ravichandran Ashwin believes that because Rishabh Pant has “one of the best defences” in international cricket, he will make a century in every match if the innovative Indian wicketkeeper-batter can control his extravagance and impetuosity.
Ashwin praised Pant’s ability to completely change a match on his own, but he claimed that many of his strokes are risky and that this prevents him from reaching his full potential.
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After a valiant 40 in the opening innings of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy match against Australia in Sydney recently, Pant got the second-fastest Test fifty by an Indian.
“We have to tell him properly what he has to do if he has to bat solid or bat with intent. He hasn’t scored a lot of runs, but he didn’t play like someone without runs. He has a lot of time on his hands. Rishabh Pant is yet to realise his fullest potential,” said Ashwin on his Youtube channel.
“He has all the shots — reverse sweep, slog sweep, everything — but the problem is that all these shots are high-risk shots. With his defence, he will surely score runs every game if he faces 200 balls.
“The point is finding that middle game. If he combines all of it, he will score 100 runs every game. He has to find that middle game,” the recently-retired cricketer added.
In the first innings of the SCG Test, Pant scored 40 runs off of 98 balls, while in the second innings, he scored 61 runs off of 33 balls. However, the keeper was unable to repeat his feats from the 2020-21 BGT, where he led India to a historic victory in the series-decider at Gabba, which was hitherto renowned as Australia’s fortress.
Ashwin was not shocked by the keeper’s persistent innings in the first essay, even though Pant is known for his propensity to play expansive shots.
“I have always grown up hearing that you have fight it out. In Sydney, he played two different knocks in one single game. He got hit everywhere and scored a 40, it will be the least spoken innings of Rishabh Pant. It is very unfair.
“In the second innings, he scored a swashbuckling fifty, earning him a lot of praise. Everyone forgot that first innings and praised him for the second knock,” Ashwin pointed out.
Speaking about Pant’s defensive style, Ashwin claimed that he is among the greatest. He also seemed to think that the Indian, along with Steve Smith and Joe Root, is one of the best hitters of the past seven years, during which time batting has become “significantly difficult and averages have decreased.”
“We must realise that Rishabh Pant rarely gets out playing a defence. He’s got one of the best defences in world cricket. Defence has become a challenging aspect, he has the best defence with a soft hand.
“I have bowled to him a lot in the nets, he’s not gotten out, he doesn’t get an edge, he doesn’t get LBW, he has the best defence. I have tried telling it to him. One opinion about Rishabh was that he plays a lot of shots, he has to fight it out in Test cricket,” Ashwin said.
“Test cricket is playing according to situation. In the last seven years, batting has become significantly difficult, from 2018 to 2025. But, in the WTC cycle, batting averages have decreased.
“Joe Root is in his own zone. Of course, Williamson… Smith has rediscovered again. What we realised is, Rishabh Pant has played in these times.”
The 38-year-old Ashiwn, who announced his retirement from international cricket in the middle of the BGT, stated that he will still play cricket.
“It was about me as an India cricketer, that’s over. But Ashwin as a cricketer is not over yet. I feel that there is still some distance for that.
“I feel that I can talk about my personal decision over a period of time. In fact, I want to document my entire story as an Indian cricketer.”