With time moving so quickly that even last year feels distant, it’s easy to lose sight of what Rishabh Pant has already achieved. India’s triumph in the T20 World Cup in June 2024 ended a 17-year wait, and in Bridgetown he was the wicketkeeper who helped steer the title moments, including the match-shifting dismissal of Heinrich Klaasen.
In that final, Pant’s wicketkeeping and game awareness provided a timely edge, and his “classic Pant gamesmanship” played a decisive role when it mattered most. The left-hander’s tournament also began with promise: on the tricky surfaces at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York, he looked like India’s most effective batter in hard-fought wins over Ireland (36 not out) and Pakistan (42 off 31 balls in a chase that finished at 119).
Once the competition moved to the Caribbean for the Super Eights and beyond, Pant’s rhythm dropped. He managed only 75 runs across five innings, capped by a second-ball duck in the final against South Africa.
From title hero to white-ball outsider
It was still reasonable to think Pant would receive a longer leash in India’s limited-overs plans. However, after two matches in Pallekele the following month—one knock of 49 off 33 and another of 2 not out off 2—he was pushed out of international T20 action.
India have experimented at wicketkeeper-batter in multiple cycles, trying Sanju Samson, Jitesh Sharma, and Ishan Kishan before returning to Samson again. Pant, meanwhile, has largely sat outside the conversation for white-ball cricket, even as KL Rahul has cemented the 50-over wicketkeeper-batter role with major contributions at No. 5 and No. 6.
When it comes to limited-overs output, Pant’s recent record has not matched the expectations around his talent. In 31 ODIs, he has 871 runs at 33.50 with a strike rate of 106.21, and his lone ODI century is 125 not out. In 76 T20 internationals, he has 1,209 runs at 23.25, with a strike rate of 127.26 per 100 balls.
His Test numbers, by contrast, remain striking: he averages 42.91, strikes at 74.24, and has eight hundreds in 49 matches. Yet in limited-overs internationals, he has struggled to find the consistency that would keep him firmly in India’s plans—an issue that has slowed his momentum and dulls the joy that often comes with his flamboyant style.
Those concerns have piled up since he was dropped from both white-ball formats after India’s tour of Sri Lanka in July–August 2024. Over the last 20 months, Pant has been restricted to Tests—though he has still produced strong performances there. Still, it appears painful that a player with a skillset seemingly suited to the pace of 20- and 50-over cricket is not just underused, but nearly absent from selection discussions altogether.
Even with all the pressure, Pant has managed to keep his balance and composure. But there is a sense that the free-spirited edge of the past—on and off the field—is slowly fading. Part of that could be linked to the second chance he received after his horrific single-car accident in December 2022. More likely, the bigger factor is the decline in his white-ball returns, which has pushed him far down the pecking order, where even the top tier feels out of sight.
IPL value remains, but fortunes have turned
- India’s T20 World Cup win in June 2024 featured Pant as wicketkeeper, including a key dismissal of Heinrich Klaasen in the title match.
- Pant began the tournament strongly in New York: 36 not out vs Ireland and 42 off 31 balls vs Pakistan (119 in the chase).
- After moving to the Caribbean for the Super Eights, he scored 75 runs in five innings and made a second-ball duck in the final vs South Africa.
- After two games in Pallekele (49 off 33 and 2 not out off 2), Pant was removed from international T20 plans.
- In ODI cricket, he has 871 runs from 31 matches (33.50 average, 106.21 strike rate) with one century of 125 not out.
- In T20 internationals, he has 1,209 runs from 76 matches (23.25 average, 127.26 strike rate).
- In the IPL mega auction in Jeddah in November 2024, Pant was bought by Lucknow Super Giants for ₹27 crore, making him the most expensive player in IPL history.
- Before the T20 World Cup, Pant had produced 446 runs for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2024 at a strike rate of 155.40.
- In IPL 2025, after LSG’s loss to RCB, Pant suffered an elbow injury during the innings when he scored only one run across two separate spells.
- Pant’s next match availability vs Punjab Kings on Sunday is in jeopardy.
For all the criticism in white-ball international cricket, Pant is still a high-value name in the IPL. At the mega auction in Jeddah in November 2024, he sat under pressure while watching from Rohit Sharma’s Perth room, before Lucknow Super Giants secured him for ₹27 crore—an unprecedented figure and the highest price ever paid for an IPL player.
Many viewed the deal as justified, especially after his run with Delhi Capitals in IPL 2024. In that season, he struck at 155.40 and finished with 446 runs, backing up his wider IPL reputation of having scored over 3,300 runs at nearly the 150-mark strike rate, while also being expected to lead Lucknow’s batting fortunes.
But money cannot guarantee happiness—or runs—in any format, and the 20-over version has been especially unforgiving. Pant’s first campaign with LSG has been marred by setbacks that even a demanding owner couldn’t ignore, as his early performances were slow and underwhelming.
His first 13 innings brought only 151 runs. The tempo looked heavy, and the sparkle that has usually surrounded his batting for a decade appeared missing, as if the weight of leadership pressure was dragging his stride—both in terms of confidence and timing.
Even a Pant-like unbeaten 118 in the final league match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, despite the loss, did not change the bigger picture. LSG missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year, and the season’s trend—just six wins from 14 outings—has now carried into the new campaign.
Injury dents the chase and threatens the next game
After LSG were hammered by holders RCB on Wednesday with a five-wicket defeat, their earlier momentum had already been fragile. They had also produced two last-over wins, with one influenced by Pant himself, but those positives were wiped out by three major losses.
Then came the injury that turned the spotlight even sharper. Pant endured a painful six-ball spell in the middle across two separate stretches, managing just one run—plus a crucial detail: he was dropped at short third man by Suyash Sharma. In his initial entrance to the crease, Josh Hazlewood struck him in the midriff area while he was set, and then he missed a pull, with the ball crashing into his left elbow.
Pant appeared to be in significant pain. Even the physio’s attention and the use of a spray provided little comfort. As he walked off, his elbow looked bruised and angry, and his expression showed the extent of his distress, while Hazlewood offered a consoling pat on the way past.
When Pant returned, the situation had turned: LSG were 118 for five with 25 deliveries left. From the first ball back, it was clear he was struggling, because he removed his bottom hand from the bat handle almost immediately on contact. His attempted swat off a Bhuvneshwar Kumar full toss was caught cleanly by Phil Salt, who ran in from deep mid-wicket.
The moment looked difficult to watch, and the sequence suggested Pant had to push through intense discomfort. He eventually had to leave the field, and Mukul Choudhary took over behind the stumps, effectively ending Pant’s involvement for the night.
Lucknow’s campaign has also been miserable beyond Pant, with his other top-order batting partners—Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram and Nicholas Pooran—delivering frugal returns. Even with Pant’s reputation for recovery skills, his readiness for the next contest against Punjab Kings on Sunday now hangs in the balance.
Pant has faced bigger setbacks and still found a way back, but an encore will demand his trademark escape artistry. For now, it appears the obvious routes to recovery and selection are tightly closed, leaving him with a narrow path ahead if he is to claw his way back into the swing of things.
