Rishabh Pant eyes T20I debut for India against England in Kanpur

India’s very own starlet and left-handed batsman Rishabh Pant may well have his first crack at international cricket on a senior level should Virat Kohli and Anil Kumble believe that he is indeed ready for the big game. Pant has been included in the side for the three-match T20 international series against England and it seems highly unlikely that he will be resigned to a bench-warming role in the grand scheme of things.

From the outset, Pant has been in stupendous form in the domestic circuit. Of course, he was certainly one of the standout players in India’s U19 World Cup Campaign the previous year, but his numbers in the Ranji Trophy coupled with some impressive batting performances in the Indian Premier League both for Delhi as well as the Delhi Daredevils has eventually earned him a place in the Indian cricket team.

The 19-year old was also a part of the second practice game that featured Indian opener Ajinkya Rahane as they went ahead and secured a massively impressive win over England at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai. A half-century for Rishabh Pant saw him selected for the T20I series eventually. Moreover, with the Indian cricket team facing problems at the top of the order and all three openers seemingly misfiring, it would certainly be difficult not to see that the southpaw has a chance at the very least in a bid to prove his mettle in the international level.

Pant was certainly pleased with the opportunity and went ahead to state that he was certainly learning a great deal from former India skipper MS Dhoni. “I am trying to learn from Dhoni bhai (Mahendra Singh Dhoni) since a long time, but time never came, because he was different (in different teams). Now since the opportunity has come, I will get to learn a lot of wicket-keeping (from him) and he will make the mindset good,” he told PTI.

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