Ahead of the one-off Test against Afghanistan, the selection committee removed Rishabh Pant as vice-captain. Pant had led India in their previous Test against South Africa where they faced a record-breaking 408-run defeat. On the eve of the one-off Test in New Chandigarh, head coach Gautam Gambhir played down the leadership role. Gambhir also made it clear that he would not tell Pant to curb his natural instinct to attack but mould his game as per the situation. He doesn’t mind how the runs come as long as they do.
“Responsibility is only playing for India. Everything else – captaincy, vice-captaincy – is a byproduct… We will expect him to be the way he is. It’s not like we will tell him to curb his game, but playing the situation is very important… the ultimate aim is to score runs and take wickets,” Gambhir said in the pre-match press conference.
Assistant coach’s account of Gambhir-Pant communication
On June 4, assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate had revealed the gist of conversation between Gambhir and Pant leading up to the Test. The former Netherlands all-rounder said that the wicketkeeper-batter doesn't need a format title to be a leader in the team.
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“I think he’s committed to playing a good role model and senior player. I actually heard him and Gauti having a chat around that yesterday. ‘How you want to conduct yourself as a senior player’, expanding to the communications or so, how you’re going to play,” Doeschate told the reporters on June 4.
“I don’t think he needs a formal title to be a leader in an elite setup like this, and I think Rishabh understands that,” he added.
Advice to Gambhir from assistant and Sonnet coach
While Gambhir did not talk about Pant’s shot selection, Ten Doeschate wants the southpaw to adjust his game as per situation. Not just him, but his formative coach Devender Sharma was of similar opinion. He wants the explosive batter to play more straighter and do away with the ‘innovative shots’.
Pant not in current white-ball plans
Meanwhile, Pant has been dropped from the ODI squad. Also, he is not in the reckoning to make a T20I comeback either, especially after an unimpressive run in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 as Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain. After they finished at the bottom of the points table, Pant stepped down as captain.