Rishabh Pant is almost at his best when he’s reckless: Daniel Vettori

The Delhi Capitals have suffered a huge setback after their mammoth 91-run loss at the hands of the defending champions Chennai Super Kings last weekend. The loss has left DC with no choice but to win all their remaining fixtures by impressive margins should they need to make a consecutive playoff appearance.

While head coach Ricky Ponting has backed skipper Rishabh Pant’s captaincy tactics recently, former New Zealand spinner Daniel Vettori has also backed Pant by saying that the youngster is at his best when reckless. The southpaw who is leading the side for the second season has not had a good time with the bat or as captain and was in the news for his outburst at the match officials last month following a no-ball incident.

“Rishabh Pant is almost at his best when he’s reckless, and we’ve seen him play some exceptional innings when he just continues to take teams downtime and time again,” Vettori said while speaking on ESPNcricinfo’s ‘T20 Time Out’.

Rishabh Pant isn’t having a fine time in IPL 2022

The middle-order superstar has only managed 281 runs from 11 matches and now, with the things heating up for the Capitals, he would be needed to take the responsibility of playing a pivotal role in helping his team do the unthinkable. DC currently occupy the fifth spot in the points table with five wins from 11 matches with 10 points to their tally at an economy rate of +0.150. They would be hoping to climb the ladder against the northern rivals Rajasthan Royals in their next encounter at the DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai on May 11.

The wicketkeeper-batter has been getting starts but has failed to convert them into impactful scores. While he did play a cameo of 11-ball 21 in the last game against Chennai that included four fours, he was bowled by Moeen Ali while going for an aggressive shot. While bowling all-rounder Shardul Thakur did score 24 lower down the order, all he could do was ensure that the margin of defeat is reduced and DC could breach the 100-run mark.