Of all the players, one batter who can change the course of the innings for India in Test match cricket is Rishabh Pant. Through his ability to play unorthodox cricketing shots and the unpredictability in when he picks to be aggressive. There have been a few questions during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy on how Pant should approach his innings, whether he should be more responsible, or let him play the way he always does.
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Fast-forward to the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, Pant has been able to churn out runs with his attacking approach, and former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar said Pant deserves the freedom. “Rishabh Pant will play in his way no matter what the situation is. He should get that license because he deserves it. The batting unit has to function well. Jaiswal must think a bit about how he got out. He should make use of his form. Pant, I feel, is a big player at No.5. He is a batter who England fear,” Manjrekar said on Star Sports.
After scoring two tons in two games, Shubman Gill failed to contribute in the third Test at Lord’s. Despite that, India has managed to put on a good fight in both innings. “Shubman Gill’s role is important. But India should also look that there was no contribution from Gill in the batting at Lord’s and despite that the batting line-up was challenging. That is a good takeaway that we are not completely dependent on Gill,” Manjrekar said.
Manjrekar also said Gill needs to introspect a bit in the long gap between the Lord’s Test and the Old Trafford Test. “I feel he has the ability to carry form. Maybe there will be some introspection in this gap. He should look at whether the altercation was necessary or should he just focus on captaincy. If he does that, then his run-making machine will run again at Old Trafford,” Manjrekar observed.
