Sanjay Manjrekar praised Rishabh Pant as India’s best batter in the T20 World Cup 2024, noting that promoting him to No. 3 was a brilliant move by the team management.
Sanjay Manjrekar has identified Rishabh Pant as Team India’s standout batter in the T20 World Cup 2024. The Indian team advanced to the Super Eight stage with an unbeaten record, securing victories against Ireland, Pakistan, and the USA. Their match against Canada was abandoned due to a wet outfield.
India’s group-stage matches in the USA featured challenging pitches, making batting difficult. Senior players Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma struggled for runs, with Kohli managing only five runs in three innings and a golden duck against the USA. Rohit Sharma scored a crucial half-century against Ireland but failed in the other matches.
In contrast, Rishabh Pant excelled after being promoted to the No. 3 position, a strategic decision by the team management. Manjrekar praised the decision to promote Pant, noting its effectiveness from the warm-up match against Bangladesh. Pant, who usually bats at No. 4 or 5, adapted well to the new role, becoming India’s top scorer with 96 runs in the tournament.
“They (team management) want more and more impact players, at every position down the order and Rishabh Pant, I didn’t expect him to be batting at No. 3, and what a brilliant move it has turned out to be, starting from that warm-up game against Bangladesh, when Samson and Rohit Sharma took some time to get used to the surface,” Manjrekar was quoted as saying by the Hindustan Times.
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“Pant has showed his class. He has been India’s best batter in this tournament so far, and on a difficult pitch, and that is Rishabh Pant’s class. That they gave him the No. 3 slot also ensured that India don’t have six right-handers like they had in that 50-over World Cup and the only left-hander India had was Jadeja at No. 7,” he added.
In the tournament, after securing a spot in the Super 8, India has confirmed venues for their next matches. They will face Australia on June 24 in St. Lucia, with additional matches on June 20 and June 22 in Barbados and Antigua, respectively.
Last Updated on June 17, 2024
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