Team India’s wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant failed to make an impact in the third ODI against New Zealand on Wednesday, November 30 at the Hagley Oval in Christchurch. This stirred up the selection debate once again, as Rishabh Pant is being given a chance ahead of Sanju Samson, who has a good record in the ODIs. Team India skipper for the New Zealand ODI series, Shikhar Dhawan has expressed the reason behind Rishabh Pant’s selection.
Rishabh Pant managed just twenty-five runs in two innings in the recently concluded ODI series against New Zealand. He hasn’t been able to live up to the expectations in limited-overs cricket for India. In 30 ODI matches, the wicket-keeper batter averages 34.60, scoring 856 runs, with five fifties and a century. Speaking about the selection dilemma, Team India’s skipper for the ODI series against New Zealand, Shikhar Dhawan expressed,
“Mushkil as such nahi hai. Jaise Rishabh hai… usne England mein one-day khela hai. Waha pe uska 100 tha so uske baad of course, jiss player ne 100 banaya hai usey back kiya jata hai. Har ek cheez larger picture dekh ke kari jaati hai. Agar koi match-winner player hai toh usko back karna hai. Bade saare cheezon ko analyse karke hi decision liye jaate hain. (It’s not difficult. Rishabh Pant has scored a century in England, after that, he deserves to be backed. A match-winner player needs to be backed by the Team. We have to analyze a lot of things while taking a decision.)”
Achha karne ke bawajood wait karna padta: Shikhar Dhawan
Sanju Samson has a stunning record in a short ODI career. He averages 66 in eleven games, slamming two half-centuries. The Kerala batter played in the first ODI against New Zealand, where he scored 36 runs off 38 deliveries. However, he was dropped for the remaining two games. Shikhar Dhawan expressed that Sanju Samson has done well in the limited opportunities that he has got. However, he added that a player sometimes has to wait despite performing well.
“Of course, Sanju Samson bada achha kar raha hai. Woh apni jagah… usko jitne mauke mile hain usne achha kara hai. But sometimes, achha karne ke bawajood wait karna padta hai kyuki pehle player ne kaafi achha kara hota hai. And uski jo skill hai, humein pata hota hai ki woh match-winner hai. Usko uss waqt cushioning ki zarurat hai jab woh achha nahi karta. Toh woh cushioning di jaati hai player ko. (Of course, Sanju Samson is doing well. He has done well in the opportunities that he has got. But, sometimes a player needs to wait even after doing well because the previous player is also playing well. We know the skill that Rishabh Pant has, he is a match-winner. He needs that cushioning from the team when he doesn’t do well)”.
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