Yuvraj Singh warns Indian team management against 'suppressing' Rishabh Pant's talents

Sudhir Gupta 16:40 25/09/2019
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  • Pant has scored overseas tons in England and Australia.

    Former India star all-rounder Yuvraj Singh believes that the team management’s recent criticism of Rishabh Pant’s shot selection will only prove to be counterproductive.

    Pant’s rash manner of dismissals, especially in the limited-overs formats, has come increasingly under the scanner in recent months with skipper Virat Kohli, head coach Ravi Shastri and batting coach Vikram Rathour publicly criticising the young wicketkeeper batsman.

    The 21-year-old’s erratic displays in West Indies were followed up with a poor showing in the recently concluded T20 series against South Africa where the left-hander fell to two tame dismissals.

    While he has been asked to tread a fine line between careless and fearless cricket by Rathour, Yuvraj feels that suppressing Pant’s attacking instincts is not the solution.

    “Somebody needs to get the best out of him (Pant),” the World Cup winning all-rounder told NDTV in a recent interview.

    “How you get the best out of him is completely based on his character. You have to understand his character, you have to understand his psychology, and you have to work like that.

    Pant's erratic shot selection has been under the scanner.

    Pant’s erratic shot selection has been under the scanner.

    “If you’re going to suppress him, you’re not going to get the best out of him.”

    Pant’s start to his Test career has been a rewarding one so far with the youngster becoming the first Indian wicketkeeper in history to register tons in England and Australia last year. However, the same consistency has eluded him in the shorter formats with his average in ODIs and T20s currently standing at 22.90 and 20.31 respectively.

    Yuvraj wants the Indian team management to mentor Pant carefully if they are extract the maximum out of his explosive potential.

    “At the moment, the thing is, at the IPL young guys are getting a lot of money. So maybe someone needs to tell them how to go about their business or how to go about their life, and what is your priority,” he stated.

    “Somebody really needs to talk to them and get the best out of them, rather than shouting or suppressing, things are not going to help.

    “That guy has scored two Test away hundreds at a very young age, so the guy has a lot of potential. How do you get the best out of that guy is something they have to realise.”

    Having scored just 23 runs in the two T20 innings against the Proteas, Pant will now hope to get better returns in the upcoming three-match Test series against the same opposition which begins on October 2.

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