“Can’t imagine dropping him from Tests” - Deep Dasgupta backs Rishabh Pant ahead of 3rd India vs South Africa Test

Despite scoring a solitary fifty in his last 13 Test innings, Deep Dasgupta feels Rishabh Pant should feature in the third India-South Africa Test in Cape Town. Pant has been heavily criticized by former cricketers like Sunil Gavaskar and Gautam Gambhir for his poor shot selection in the second Test of the ongoing series. Facing Kagiso Rabada, the southpaw threw his wicket away for a duck when India were struggling at 167-4 in the second innings. The visitors eventually lost the match by seven wickets.

Wriddhiman Saha’s recent tweet, which carried pictures of him practicing his wicketkeeping and batting skills, led many to believe he would replace Pant in the series decider. However, former Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dasgupta insists on showing faith in Pant’s match-winning ability.

Currently in the West Indies, as part of the commentary panel for the upcoming ICC U-19 World Cup, Dasgupta spoke exclusively to Sportskeeda about the Cape Town Test and India’s chances of reclaiming the U-19 World Cup. The former Bengal captain, who made his Test debut in South Africa’s Bloemfontein in 2001, also explained why the Bengal team has been 'underachievers' in Indian domestic cricket.

Here are the excerpts:-

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Q: Virat Kohli made it clear in the pre-match press conference that Mohammed Siraj has been ruled out of the final Test due to a hamstring injury. Who do you think should replace him in Cape Town?

Dasgupta: I would prefer Ishant [Sharma] to Umesh [Yadav]. Ishant’s height gives him an obvious advantage. You can’t rule that out if you take the conditions into account. Both are good bowlers, but Ishant’s inclusion will add more variety to India’s bowling attack. He can use his height to hit tougher lengths and trouble South Africa’s top-order batters. Let’s see what the team management decides.

Q: Rishabh Pant has drawn a lot of flak for his poor shot selection in the second innings of the Johannesburg Test. Many former cricketers have opined that Wriddhiman Saha should replace Pant for the Cape Town Test. Do you agree with them?

Dasgupta: While Wriddhi is a great wicketkeeper, I can’t imagine dropping Rishabh from Tests. Do you remember his exploits in Australia last year? Yes, he did play a bad shot to get out at the Wanderers, but the team management should show faith in him. We must understand that Rishabh likes to play his cricket a certain way and it has fetched him enough success so far. What you don’t want at this stage is him losing his confidence.

Q: That’s a fair point, but is it wrong to expect a more mature attitude from Pant? After all, he is projected as a future Indian captain…

Dasgupta: You would want Rishabh to bat the way he does because he has the ability to win you a match single-handedly. And that’s a rare ability to possess. He’ll get better as he matures with time. His leadership role at Delhi Capitals will also help him in the process. Sitting on a couch at home, it’s easy to remark that one should curb his natural instincts. When the shots come off perfectly, they look good. His wicketkeeping skills have also improved considerably over the past two years. As I said before, we should ensure that he doesn’t lose his confidence. He’ll figure things out, don’t worry.

Q: Considering KL Rahul’s current form, do you think he should open the batting alongside Rohit Sharma in the ODIs leading up to the 2023 World Cup? If you have to make a choice between Shikhar Dhawan and Rishabh Pant, whom would you have in your ODI XI at present?

Dasgupta: See, KL is a very flexible player. He can make an impact in limited overs cricket even if he plays at no.5 or 6. Meanwhile, ODI cricket has been Shikhar’s forte in recent times. He has scored a lot of runs in limited-overs cricket since 2018. It won’t be easy to keep him out of the fray. However, considering his current form, I think KL should open the batting across all formats.

If you ask me to choose one between Shikhar and Rishabh, I will opt for Rishabh. [It’s] Simply because the think tank should encourage him and allow him to gain the experience of finishing more matches. Batting at no.5 or 6 is a difficult task, but I think Rishabh is cut out for it.

Q: Let’s talk about the upcoming U-19 World Cup now. What are India’s chances in the tournament?

Dasgupta: India have traditionally done well in this competition. We recently won the Asia Cup, so we are certainly one of the favorites to win the title. You know, I’m not worried about India’s chances [in the U-19 World Cup] that much. What worries me more is how far these boys can go. Over the years, many Indian U-19 stars have come and gone. We cannot let that happen. These young boys must also learn to manage their finances from an early age. While all of them have huge potential, it’s important to stay focused and grounded.

Q: Apart from India, which other teams do you think are the serious contenders for the U-19 World Cup semi-finals?

Dasgupta: I think it will be the usual suspects – India, Australia and England. Pakistan are a strong side too. You also cannot count Bangladesh out as they are the defending champions.

Q: Abhimanyu Easwaran has scored truckloads of runs at the domestic level and for India A over the past three years. In fact, he was India A’s second-highest run getter after Hanuma Vihari during their tour of South Africa late last year. Were you surprised not to see him get a call-up for the ongoing Test series?

Dasgupta: Let’s be honest. It was a tough call for the selectors. There are so many good openers in India at the moment that’s it’s extremely difficult to break into the Test side. KL [Rahul] and Mayank [Agarwal] are already playing well. Rohit [Sharma] will return soon. Then you have Shubman [Gill], Prithvi [Shaw] and Priyank [Panchal]. The only way Abhimanyu can make it to the Test team is by scoring more runs. I’m sure he’ll do that and I hope to see him in the Indian team soon.

It was a touch-and-go situation for the selectors while choosing one between Abhimanyu and Priyank. I think they chose Priyank because he’s a little more experienced and has scored more runs than Abhimanyu.

Q: How far do you think Bengal’s Ishan Porel is from getting a national call-up?

Dasgupta: Ishan is a very promising pacer. I think he and Avesh [Khan] are likely to earn national call-ups soon from the current crop of young Indian pacers. He needs to keep working hard and take plenty of wickets. Even though the Ranji Trophy has been halted for nearly two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, these boys have got enough match practice whilst playing in the IPL and for India A. At the international level, your mind-set and temperament matter more than your skills.

Abhimanyu Easwaran (L) and Ishan Porel (R). Image Courtesy: Zee News

Q: Bengal finished runners-up in the previous edition of the Ranji Trophy. They have also reached the knockouts of domestic white-ball tournaments regularly of late. How much do you think the team has improved under Arun Lal’s stewardship?

Dasgupta: We still haven’t won anything, right? See, we are talking about Bengal, we cannot be satisfied with just reaching the knockouts. I’ve been seeing this problem since my own playing days. Skill-wise and temperamentally, our players are as good as any in the country. But we don’t believe in ourselves enough. That’s why we have been underachievers. Teams like Saurashtra and Vidarbha go on to win the Ranji Trophy, but we remain satisfied with just knockout berths. What are we even talking about?

Poll : DO YOU THINK INDIA SHOULD PERSIST WITH RISHABH PANT IN THE CAPE TOWN TEST AGAINST SOUTH AFRICA?

YES

NO

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