Ricky Ponting backed Rishabh Pant to put up a strong performance for India in the T20 World Cup 2024 in the Caribbean and USA. The left-handed Pant hasn’t donned the national jersey since India’s tour of Bangladesh back in December. However, the southpaw has played competitive cricket in the last couple of months of DC in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Although the Capitals failed to make their way through to the playoffs, Pant finished as their top run-scorer. He racked up 446 runs from 13 games at an average of 40.54 and a strike-rate of 155.40 with 3 half-centuries and a top score of 88 not out to show for his efforts. Ponting said that he got positive vibes from Pant while working with him during the IPL.
“I was asked when I was over there what I thought about him. He’d been picked in the Indian squad, and I basically said he’d be one of the first players picked, and sure enough he was,” Ponting told the ICC Review.
“So, great to see him back out there playing again. I’ve enjoyed every moment of working with him. Obviously, he’s been the captain of the Delhi Capitals, and I’ve been the coach there. But it’s been a remarkable comeback, and hopefully he has a huge impact on this World Cup,” Ponting said.
Earlier in the tournament, Pant also became the third youngest to reach the landmark of 3000 runs in the IPL after Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli.
Concerns with keeping?
While Ponting lauded Pant for putting in wholehearted efforts while batting, he said that the DC skipper faced trouble while keeping wickets across 14 matches.
“No one had real concerns about his batting, because of how good he is and how dynamic he is with the bat. But with his wicket-keeping, and having to squat every ball for 14 games in a row, there were certainly some concerns there,” Ponting added.
Pant had a decent time with the keeping gloves after he finished with the joint-most dismissals (16) along with LSG’s KL Rahul. He took 11 catches and affected 5 stumpings.
India’s campaign in the World Cup starts on Wednesday, June 5 with their opening match against Ireland at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.
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