'He's 24 but has got the experience now' - Ashish Nehra wants Rishabh Pant to focus on batting over batting position

Former Indian fast bowler Ashish Nehra has some harsh words for Rishabh Pant as he believes that the attacking batter should be taking more responsibility and focus on his batting as he has got experience playing in this format.

Pant endured a turbulent IPL 2022 as he had an underwhelming season with the bat and was scrutinized heavily for his leadership skills. The southpaw was assigned the role of the deputy to stand-in skipper KL Rahul for the ongoing South Africa series, but a groin injury to the latter ruled him out the series, and hence Pant was named the skipper.

“Now, Rishabh might only be 24, but he has been playing in the IPL for five years now. So, he is an experienced player now, at least in this format. There will always be pressure on him because there’s a lot of competition. Suryakumar Yadav is there, and Virat Kohli will also return in the future. That will happen. In this series, I would want Rishabh Pant to focus more on his batting than his batting position,” Nehra told Cricbuzz.

It is important Rishabh Pant doesn’t take too much pressure: Ashish Nehra

The opening two matches saw the young skipper struggle on the pitch, but after a commanding performance in the third T20I against the Proteas, he will be feeling more confident.

Meanwhile, the Indian team will be hoping to level the series against South Africa in the 4th T20I on Friday, 17th June, in Rajkot. The Men in Blue found themselves 2-0 down after the second T20I but kept themselves alive in the series with a clinical performance in the previous outing.

The explosive batter has failed to make an impact with the bat in this series, but Nehra believes that he needs just one innings to get back in the groove and he can rely on senior pros like Hardik Pandya and Rahul Dravid in the dressing room.

“It (the batting position) doesn’t make a big difference. How he captains, how much better can he perform. He needs only one innings to get his mindset changed. It is important he doesn’t take too much pressure upon himself. Senior players like Hardik Pandya and even Rahul Dravid should help him there,” the Gujarat Titans’ head coach further added.