Former Indian cricketer VVS Laxman has heaped praises on Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant’s match-winning abilities. Laxman praised the Indian star and highlighted that the southpaw's batting position should be decided by the situation of the match, numbers of overs remaining and the wickets in hand.
Reviewing the India-England warm-up game on Monday, Laxman was asked whether Pant should bat at no.4 ahead of Suryakumar Yadav, to which the legendary cricketer said,
“I feel no.4 is the right position for Suryakumar Yadav. Rishabh Pant can start at No.5. But, if two or three wickets have fallen around 5the 13th or 14th over, then Pant can go and bat. I will pay more attention to the overs because Rishabh Pant is a batter who can change the course of a match with his power hitting,” Laxman expressed himself while talking to the host broadcasters.
Laxman believes batters like Pant and Hardik Pandya should be promoted after assessing the match situation. “So, I will send Rishabh Pant in as soon as 14 overs are done. Batters like Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya who can play the big shots and play the role of a finisher, showing that flexibility is extremely necessary,” explained Laxman.
Laxman was also questioned about Virat Kohli’s decision to have KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma as the designated openers and bat at no.3 himself, to which he said, “I feel it is the right position for him because you have experienced opening batsmen in KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma. And the way Ishan Kishan is batting, I am feeling that he is going to force the team management to play him in the playing XI but No.3 is the right position for Virat Kohli".
