"He is a much better batter than what he has shown in this series" - Deep Dasgupta wants Rishabh Pant to trust his defense

Deep Dasgupta commended the way Indian wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant batted in the second innings of the Oval Test against England. He suggested that Pant is a much better batter than what has been on display in this series and wanted him to ponder over the knock in the second innings at the Oval.

Pant came in during a tricky phase when India had lost their fifth wicket with a lead of just 195 runs. He batted with patience, leaving a lot of deliveries in the channel outside the off-stump.

India’s wicketkeeper eventually built a partnership of 100 runs in the company of Shardul Thakur, which turned out to be crucial for India’s victory.

Speaking on BBC’s Test Match Special podcast, Deep Dasgupta stated that Rishabh Pant showed a lot of maturity in the innings.

“Rishabh, the maturity with which he batted in that second innings. That’s something that he needs to ponder over, think about it. The way he approached that innings. He is a much better batter than what he has shown in this series apart from that last innings.”

The former India wicketkeeper wanted Rishabh Pant to trust his defense more. He was critical of the way Pant has tended to fall back on aggressive shots as soon as the ball started moving.

“Every time it seems like the ball is moving around a bit, he wants to just go and be ultra-aggressive. He still has a very good defensive game. He needs to trust his defensive games on surfaces where the ball is doing a bit, which till now, he hasn’t.”

#RishabhPantIsn't Rishabh pant playing his most sensible inning of this #ENGvIND tour.Keep playing man. No need of taking risk, #LordShardul is there with you😉 pic.twitter.com/SYnjoEAG4K

— Nmn (@chaos_in_peace) September 5, 2021

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Rishabh Pant has had an underwhelming series with the bat

Rishabh Pant (left) has just one half-century from seven innings this series

Rishabh Pant has had an underwhelming series with the bat so far. He has averaged a shade under 21, which is his lowest average in a series in the last two years.

Pant was under the scanner for getting out by playing some outrageous shots in the last couple of Tests, including one in the first innings at the Oval. However, he showed a lot of maturity in the second innings and batted with patience.

We needed to respond, and the only way we were going to do it was as a team. We will enjoy this moment and look to finish things on the best note in the 5th 💪 pic.twitter.com/mlNkPQiwNi

— Rishabh Pant (@RishabhPant17) September 6, 2021

Pant scored exactly 50 runs from 106 balls before falling victim to Moeen Ali’s off-breaks. He had already taken India’s lead to 315 runs by the time he was dismissed and had set up an excellent platform for the visitors to clinch victory.