Cricket Update: There have been a few beneficial improvements in Indian cricket since the Rohit Sharma-Rahul Dravid era took over. Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Ishant Sharma have been left out of the Test squad, but Hanuma Vihari and youngster Shreyas Iyer have risen to the fore and received their long-awaited Test debut. In addition, with the exception of the South Africa tour, the results have been outstanding, with India having yet to drop a match at home.
As India prepares for World Cups in back-to-back years, it’s critical to select individuals who can help the team in the long haul. India, particularly after Rohit’s tenure as captain, requires a long-term leader who can guide the country’s cricketers into the future. In the present form, three possibilities stand out: KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and Shreyas Iyer, all of whom are captaining their respective IPL franchises.
All three cricketers, particularly Pant, will play a key role in India’s next era of cricket. Pant struggled with inconsistency between August 2019 and October 2020, but that all changed during India’s tour of Australia, where he delivered a number of explosive innings to help India win a historic series. Pant hasn’t looked back since that point. He is now an indisputable member of the current Indian team, to the point where batting coach Vikram Rathour has labelled him as a mature player who can no longer be dropped.
“He has suddenly grown up. Rohit and Dravid are in the saddle now, and he knows he is an important player in the India setup. He has now matured as a player. He is getting better and better, but there is still a long way to cover,” Rathour told The Week.
After MS Dhoni, India has yearned for a finisher who can match the previous captain’s brilliance. While all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja is capable of filling that role as well, Rathour has picked Pant as the man to take over in the near future. Pant has batted at No. 4 on a couple of occasions, but his genuine potential is at Nos. 5 or 6.
“He will be a finisher at number five or six, he knows that. Nobody is pushing him to get a hundred in ODIs. He will always be an impact player and if he is consistently getting 40-50 and winning it for the team, then that is fine,” Rathour added.
