Rishabh Pant has been in the news since the beginning of this year. Not only he scored his second Test hundred at the SCG, but Rishabh also made headlines for his banter against Tim Paine. If that was not all, his photo of babysitting Tim Paine’s children broke the internet. As of now, he is not in the cricketing circle, but thoughts of including him in the squad for the 2019 World Cup surely are. Meanwhile, Sachin Tendulkar spoke about the same on his app, 100MB.
Accommodating Pant would be difficult – Sachin Tendulkar
Not long back, the wicketkeeping pair of MS Dhoni and Dinesh Karthik guided India home in the Adelaide ODI. Though Virat Kohli had the done the majority of the damage, the glovemen gave the finishing touches. Keeping recent results in mind, veteran batsman, Sachin Tendulkar said fitting Pant in the team where there are two established wicketkeepers would get tough for India.
Moreover, he said Rishabh Pant cannot be the third keeper, as it is not required; but even if he gets picked, either of a designated batsman or an all-rounder will get compromised. Framing this as a dicey call for the captain, selectors and the management to make, Tendulkar felt reluctant in saying yes.
“It’s a nice thought (to have Pant in) but we have already got Dhoni and Karthik playing as a batter, we have two wicket-keepers, who have contributed in our success yesterday. They have had a crucial partnership which won us the match,” PTI quoted.
“So if you are looking to have Pant in the team that means you have to remove a proper batter or one bowler, and I don’t think we can afford to remove a bowler. So if he replaces a proper batter who doesn’t bowl, then it’s okay but if he is going to replace an all-rounder then that’s going to cost us,” Tendulkar added.
Tendulkar lauds Dhoni; ‘finisher’ Karthik
There has been a lot of debate regarding the position and form of MS Dhoni in the India National Cricket Team. However, Tendulkar, who had played alongside MS for nearly a decade said he has his way of playing the game. Elaborating on Dhoni’s positives, Sachin said he understands the game better than many around and plays as per the situation.
“He (Dhoni) is someone who loves to play a few dot balls, understand the wicket, how the bowlers are bowling and likes to take the game till the end. That is exactly what he did. He is someone who is going to control the game from one end,” Tendulkar said.
Furthermore, the legendary batsman also lauded the new ‘finisher’ in the team, Dinesh Karthik.
“And yesterday along with Dhoni, I felt that Dinesh Karthik played rather well as he came and finished the game. It was a fantastic contribution from Dinesh also. Dhoni stayed till the end and his experience mattered.”
Meanwhile, India will face off Australia in the final ODI of the series at the MCG on Friday (January 18th).