Rishabh Pant best man to replace MS Dhoni, feels former keeper Vijay Dahiya

Indian cricket was in for a transition this month as the Men in Blue took the field in the T20I series against the Windies without former skipper MS Dhoni in their ranks. The ageing wicketkeeper-batsman, one of the best the game has seen, has been dropped both for the ongoing series as well as that against Australia later this month for the selectors have decided to look to the next World T20 in 2020. It means Dhoni now has only format – ODIs – to play for even though he has struggled with the bat for a while now.

Dhoni has been replaced by 21-year-old Rishabh Pant who made his Test debut in England earlier this year and ODI debut against the Windies recently. Pant, who already has a hundred and two nineties in Tests, though hasn’t been able to produce anything magical in the limited-over series against the Caribbeans so far but former India keeper Vijay Dahihya has given his verdict that he is the best man to replace the legendary Dhoni, who has been part of 56 T20I victories for India.

India have been in the hunt for a long-term replacement for Dhoni since he stepped down from the longer format during the 2014 Test series in Australia. A number of keepers have donned the responsibility since then but while Wriddhiman Saha has remained injured for some time now, the likes of Parthiv Patel and Dinesh Karthik haven’t been able to make use of the opportunities they got over a period of time, especially in Tests.

‘India need an all-rounder wicket-keeper’

Dahiya, who played in two Tests and 19 ODIs for India in 2000-2001, told The Times of India (TOI) in an exclusive interview: “The way the Indian team is playing right now, they are looking for a wicket-keeper who is an all-rounder. Parthiv Patel has given his bit, Dinesh Karthik has been given chances many times, but the way Rishabh Pant has grabbed the opportunities in Tests, it stands out.”

Pant, who hit his first Test runs with a six in England, scored a valiant ton in the fifth Test of the series at Kennington Oval which though India lost. He played in the ODI series against the Windies as a batsman alongside Dhoni and is donning the gloves in the T20I series which India have already won. Pant made his international debut in the shortest format against England in 2017.

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