"Save Those For IPL": Rishabh Pant Receives Blunt Warning Ahead Of 4th England Test

Former Indian cricket team wicket-keeper Farokh Engineer had a blunt warning for Rishabh Pant ahead of the fourth Test encounter against England at Old Trafford. Pant is well known for his unorthodox style of batting and in the first three matches, he showed an array of risky shots - some of which yielded great results for him. However, Engineer told Pant to save the risky shots for the Indian Premier League (IPL) and considering the fact that he bats in the Top 4 for the Indian cricket team, he asked Pant to bring discipline in his game and try to build his innings in order to score more runs.

"Absolutely. Save those for IPL. Test cricket demands discipline. From a number three or four, you expect them to play proper cricket, get big scores, and build innings," he told RevSportz.

"He has the confidence and has gotten away with it often. But he needs to be more responsible in crucial moments, like right before lunch or at the end of a day's play. Still, he's immensely talented. He invents his own shots, and thankfully, helmets allow that now. In our time, we wouldn't have had any teeth left."

Pant did not keep wickets for the majority of the third Test after suffering a finger injury. However, Engineer believes that Pant can make the playing XI as a pure batter as well.

"For the runs he's scored, yes, he can play as a pure batter. But Rishabh is unpredictable. Whatever comes to his mind, he does it. I joked with him about his shot selection, and he just laughed—said he does what feels right in the moment. Rishabh has scored centuries in both innings of a Test, which is remarkable. So yes, he could play purely as a batsman, especially with England's strong bowling lineup, now including Jofra Archer and Atkinson," said Engineer.

Topics mentioned in this article

Farokh Maneksha Engineer Rishabh Pant England Cricket Team India Cricket Team England vs India, 2025 Cricket