Former India captain Kris Srikkanth has called on Lucknow Super Giants to rest Rishabh Pant for their remaining fixtures in the ongoing IPL after the franchise was knockout of play-off contention by Sunrisers Hyderabad. In a season where Lucknow have been ravaged by injuries, Pant who was bought at the player auctions for a record Rs 27 crore has endured a season to forget. Captaining the side, he has posted only one fifty as he was dismissed for 7 on Monday.
Having began his captaincy stint with a zero against his former franchise , Pant has touched two-figure score only thrice in 11 innings. His scores this season read: 0, 15, 2, 2, 21, 63, 3, 0, 4, 18 and 7. While he initially didn’t show signs of struggling for form, as the tournament progressed, there were no signs of improvement. There have been questions as to whether the price tag added to the pressure and with the important England tour coming up, Pant’s form has become a huge cause of concern for India.
And speaking on his YouTube channel Cheeky Cheeka, Srikkanth said that the time has come for Pant to spend some time away from the game. “Unfortunately things are not going ’s way,” Srikkanth said. “Even when captaining… be it bowling changes or field placements, he seems to be messing up in some form or the other. Things are not going his way. Even with the bat, he can just play freely and be bold, but he seems to be playing half-hearted shots with no clarity. Every game he is finding new ways to get dismissed. During my playing days I use to invent ways to get dismissed and Pant is doing worse than me. 30 years back I was like that, today he is finding new ways to get out — reverse-sweep, reverse-paddle, swinging wildly — all of it is happening,” said the former chairman of selectors.
With their play-offs hopes over, Srikkanth said the time has come for the franchise to leave Pant alone for his own good and advised the team to strengthen its bowling next season. “I just want him to be left alone…they should say enough, just go and spend some time away. The season is over. Whatever they are planning for the next season — they have change the core and bring in bowlers — they don’t have any bowlers in this team,” Srikkanth said.
