"No One Can Replace...": Ex Australia Skipper's Verdict On Rishabh Pant's Absence In Test Series

Rishabh Pant

. Pant was one of the top performers for India when they defeated Australia back in 2021 and it is mainly due to his aggressive gameplay against the pacers. However, the wicket-keeper batsman will not be available for the series starting on February 9 after he was injured in a road accident. In his absence, KS Bharat is expected to keep wickets for the hosts while

Ishan Kishan

was included in the squad as a back-up. 

 "India also have some points to prove, not the least to do with how Pant's replacement performs. The main thing India will lose from Pant's unavailability is an excellent run rate, which came from his belligerent aggression. No one can replace Pant's desire to dominate bowlers, so India have to rely on their top batters not only performing but also maintaining a good strike rate," Chappell wrote in his column for ESPNCricinfo. 

 The Indian pitches are traditionally quite helpful to spinners and Chappell wrote that it will be extremely important for the top Indian batters to stop

Nathan Lyon

from picking up wickets at regular intervals. 

“One of the main tasks for Indian players like

Rohit Sharma

,

Virat Kohli

and

Cheteshwar Pujara

will be to establish mental superiority over Lyon. If Australia can't rely on Lyon claiming regular wickets at an acceptable rate, their bowling will then depend greatly on the "big three,” he explained.