'It's big boys cricket' - Dean Jones disagrees with Yuvraj Singh on Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant has been under fire for his poor performances in white-ball cricket ever since making his debut in 2017. Starting as an understudy to MS Dhoni, he was earmarked as the successor of the great man and though has had an impressive start in Tests, even there his shot selection and aggressive playing style has come to haunt him.

The calls for dropping Pant has started gaining voice given that many other options are strongly following on his heels and have been doing well for India A and domestic cricket. Though some of the former players have been suggesting to have patience with Pant and that the Indian team should give him a longer rope than what he has already been given. Something similar was said by Yuvraj Singh, who mentioned that even MS Dhoni was not made in a day and we should give Pant more time.

Dean Jones disagrees with Yuvraj Singh 

However, this type of statements from former Indian players has not gone down very well with former Australia player Dean Jones. Jones comes from one of the toughest cricketing systems which have always put an expiry date on players no matter how talented they were and despite giving a longer rope, if the player didn’t perform, there was no hesitation in dropping them for someone better who deserved the spot.

Yuvraj Singh had said that if Pant is suppressed, one cannot get the best out of him. People working with him needed to understand his character and psyche and work according to it. However, Jones felt that Pant shouldn’t be treated different than any other young player just because he has shown more talent than others. He also stated that Pant needed to mature and know that he was in big leagues now and work towards improving his game quicker, instead of asking for more time.

“Why should Pant be any different to any other young player that has made mistakes? It’s big boys cricket. I know he is young.. but he needs to learn some home truths and improve his off- side play! Jones tweeted.

Why should Pant be any different to any other young player that has made mistakes? It’s big boys cricket. I know he is young.. but he needs to learn some home truths and improve his off- side play! https://t.co/Nwl83gDB6U

— Dean Jones AM (@ProfDeano) September 25, 2019

Meanwhile, it has been reported that Indian team management might opt for Wriddhiman Saha as the first-choice wicketkeeper over Pant for the upcoming Test series against South Africa at home. With the pitches expecting to spin a lot and bounce, Saha, who is considered to be one of the best keepers in the world, is better suited behind the stumps, given the flaws in Rishabh Pant’s glovework standing up to the stumps.