Former India cricketer and selector Sarandeep Singh gave his opinion on the never-ending debate on India’s first-choice keeper in Tests, saying Rishabh Pant can give India 10 years but the same cannot be said about Wriddhiman Saha. Sarandeep Singh lauded Pant for improving his shot-selection and wicketkeeping skills to become India’s first-choice keeper, especially in Test cricket.
Notably, Pant was dropped from India’s playing XI as the management opted to go with the experience of Saha in the Adelaide pink ball Test against Australia. However, Pant returned for the Boxing Day Test and since then he has been in incredible form, having gone on to do well against Australia and England.
Pant has already played two special, unforgettable knocks in Test cricket while also translating his heroics in 50-over cricket as he belted consecutive 70+ scores against England. In the ODI series against England, Pant scored 155 runs in two innings at a strike-rate of 152. He hit a quick-fire 77 off 40 balls in the second match and followed it up with a 78 off 62 in the series-decider.
“No praise will be enough for Pant. He had some fitness issues, worked on that, and worked on his shot selection. If you expect a 21-year-old to play like a 30-year-old, it is tough to start with. You see Hardik (Pandya), the way he bats now with experience, the same thing has been seen in Pant now in the last six months or so,” Sarandeep Singh told PTI.
“He was out of the team which was good for him. There is a right time and right ball to hit. The way he played in Australia, it shows he has gained a lot of experience. He is picking and choosing,” he added.
