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India's Gabba hero, Rishabh Pant, was not at his best in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 on Australian soil. Pant averaged 28.33 and scored just one fifty. During the series, his unorthodox strokeplay was under question. At one point, legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar called him 'stupid' for his shot selection against Scott Boland. Despite criticism, former India batter and current Delhi Capitals (DC) head coach Hemang Badani doesn't want Pant to curb his instinct to attack on England soil.
"I genuinely hope it doesn't change one bit. I think he is somebody who has found the right balance of attacking stroke-making and defensive stroke-making in this cricket. So I don't see any reason why you should try and change that," Badani told Hindustan Times.
Ahead of the Tendulkar-Anderson Trophy, Badani wants head coach Gautam Gambhir to tell newly-appointed vice-captain to stick to his natural game.
"It's important that someone like Gautam Gambhir, the head coach, has a chat with him and speaks to him and says, 'Rishabh tu apna game khel.' Don't think too hard about captaincy, vice captaincy, you're the second in command, none of that.
"There is a certain way that you've played over the years and that has worked well for you. And I think it will work well for us if he does that again, because he is a batter who comes to the bat at times when the second new ball is due," Badani added.
Badani wants Pant to bat at no.5. He feels that the wicketkeeper will put the England bowlers under pressure. He feels that Pant has the right balance to take the game on and needs backing from the team management.
Pant back in form
Pant was not in a good form in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 until it was postponed for a week. Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain scored an unbeaten 118 in a losing cause against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).
Pant's Test numbers in England
The 27-year-old has two Test centuries and as many half-centuries on England soil but lacks consistency. From 17 innings, he has 556 runs at an average of 32.70. On the upcoming tour, India would need consistent scores from him.
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