WI v IND 2019: It's time for Rishabh Pant to rise to the occasion and take over baton from Dhoni, feels Virat Kohli

MS Dhoni chose to keep away from cricket for two months after Team India’s exit from the ICC World Cup 2019 and is currently in Kashmir serving the Indian army till August 15. This means that MS Dhoni was not considered for the West Indies tour beginning from August 3. The India tour to the Caribbean will comprise of 3 T20Is, 3 ODIs, and 2 Test matches.

The first two T20Is will be played in Florida, USA, with the remaining T20I and other games to be played in the Caribbean. Dhoni’s performance was the focal point through the ICC event, as his slow batting and inability to finish the matches on his own came to forth during some critical moments for the team, mainly in the match against England, the only league tie that India lost in the tournament.

A chance for Rishabh Pant to shine feels Kohli

Dhoni’s absence has given the young Rishabh Pant a chance to shine, as he has been chosen as the first-choice wicketkeeper in all the three formats. he youngster has been backed by the selection committee as well as skipper Virat Kohli to get a consistent run-in and unleash his full potential. With Dhoni’s days in India colours slowly coming to an end, the selection committee has put their bets of Pant to come good.

“It’s a great opportunity for someone like Rishabh Pant to really play a lot of international cricket, show his credentials, really unleash his potential at this stage. We know how much ability he has and we all want him to become a consistent performer for the Indian cricket team. MS Dhoni’s experience is always going to be a very crucial factor but having said that some of these younger guys have a great opportunity ahead of them and they should just look forward to it,” skipper Kohli was quoted as saying by Timesnownews.com.

Rishabh Pant will be eager to show off his skills with the gloves with a long run ensured for him throughout the series. He was impressive in the opportunities he got in the World Cup, but unlike his batting in the Tests, his ODI and T20I performances seem to be asking more maturity with his shot selection and putting a price tag on his wicket, instead of going out with a bang.