The former Pakistan middle-order batter, Basit Ali, has made a breathe-taking prediction on the young wicket-keeper batter for India, Rishabh Pant, who is going into the mega auction of the Indian Premier League (IPL) for the very first time since 2016 in his debut season, where he was included in the Delhi Capitals (DC) squad.
Over the years, with his incredible ability and aggressive version of the game, Rishabh Pant has stoned the attention of the spectators and the selectors of India. In 110 innings of the tournament, the left-handed batter has smashed 3284 runs at an average of 35.31 and a strike rate of more than 148, with the help of 18 half-centuries and one hundred with the best score of an unbeaten 128 runs.
The Uttara Khand-born was handed over the responsibility of the franchise in 2021, where they finished at the playoffs stage of the tournament, having lost the first qualifier and the eliminator. But going into the 18th season of the competition, the veteran parted ways with the team.
Basit Ali praises the smart shot selection of Rishabh Pant under pressure
A few weeks ago, the 2020-runners-up of the event ended their relationship with head coach Ricky Ponting, and that sparked speculation of the possibility of them leaving Pant from the new season. They decided to keep Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, South Africa’s Tristian Stubbs, and the uncapped Indian player Abhishek Porel for the new season.
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Rishabh Pant, who cracked 446 runs in 13 innings of the IPL 2024 at an average of over 40 and a strike rate of more than 150 with the help of three half-centuries and made his way back into the national side after the unfortunate car accident, will now be entering into the mega auction to find his new base.
The reports claimed the Delhi batter’s desire to keep on leading the side and be part of the squad selection, besides the choice of head coach for the new edition of the competition, didn’t satisfy many members of the Capitals management and worked against him.
Few of the franchises are expected to go big after the wicket-keeper batter in the auction. The likes of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) are trying to find their new brand in him, who can replace MS Dhoni in the future, while Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Punjab Kings (PBKS) see the middle-order batter with captaincy in him.
The former batter of the Green Brigade, Basit Ali, has remarked that because of his incredible talent, the left-handed batter should be earning around INR 50 crore in the mega auction of the tournament. His comments came after the veteran, almost singlehandedly, took India over the line in their fourth innings chase of 147 runs in the Mumbai Test.
“Rishabh Pant scored 60 in the first innings and 64 in the second. What can I say about this kid? People might say he is worth 25 crore, but in my opinion, he should go for 50 crore.” Basit claimed.
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The shot selection and the desire to do it under pressure, especially when the top order of the Blue Brigade had already returned to the pavilion, impressed the Pakistan batter the most.
“When he was batting on this surface, it looked as if it was a flat pitch. He was hitting whenever he wanted. But he was very smart with his shot selection, knowing not to play shots in areas where he was weak. Others didn’t manage to do this.” Basit observed.
The mega auction is expected to take place in the last week of November and the first week of December.