Legendary Indian batter Sunil Gavaskar has made a big statement a few months ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024 in the USA and West Indies. Gavaskar feels that Rishabh Pant should be selected in the T20 World Cup squad 'even if he's fit on one leg'.
While Jitesh Sharma and Sanju Samson have been named in the squad as wicketkeepers for three T20I series against Afghanistan, Gavaskar backed Pant to do the job for India on the big stage.
"I see him (Rahul) as a wicketkeeper as well but I will say one thing before that - if Rishabh Pant is fit on even one leg, he should come in the team because he is a game-changer in every format. If I am the selector, I will put his name first," said Gavaskar on Star Sports.
Pant is yet to make a comeback to competitive cricket after surviving an unfortunate car accident on the Delhi-Dehradun highway on December 30, 2022. While he is expected to make a comeback in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, Gavaskar feels that he should play even if he is not fit to take the gloves. In that case, he backed KL Rahul as wicketkeeper ahead of other options.
"However, if Pant is unavailable and KL Rahul keeps wickets, it will be good because the balance will also get created. Then you have the option to play him as an opener or use him in the middle order. He is an all-rounder and he has improved his wicketkeeping so much. When he used to keep earlier, he was probably a slightly reluctant wicketkeeper, a keeper you could just manage with, but now he is a proper wicketkeeper," Gavaskar added.
Rahul will have a chance to prove himself in IPL 2024 while leading Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). In the last season, he was ruled out of the tournament due to an injury during the controversial home clash against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB). He was out of action for several months following the injury.
Rahul was not selected in India’s T20I squad for the Afghanistan series. Like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, he has not played a single T20I since India’s semifinal exit in T20 World Cup 2022 after the 10-wicket loss to England.
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
