Rishabh Pant Remains Key to India's Test Plans Despite Losing Vice-Captaincy

Rishabh Pant remains key to India's Test plans despite vice-captaincy loss, says Ryan ten Doeschate

New Delhi, June 4

Pant was stripped of the vice-captaincy duties for the Afghanistan Test, with veteran batter KL Rahul taking over as deputy to skipper Shubman Gill. The decision came amid a dip in Pant's recent form, but the Indian team management has reiterated its faith in the dynamic left-hander's importance to the side.

Speaking ahead of the Test in Mullanpur starting June 6, ten Doeschate said, "I don't think you need a formal title to be a leader in a lead set-up like this. I think Rishabh understands that, and I think he's committed to being a good role model and a senior player."

"With Rishabh's brilliance, we don't want to take away all the stuff that he does. Occasionally, if he can adjust his game to play the situation slightly more, I think that's something you'll see him work on. But he's been in great spirits again. He's one of those guys who's happy and cheerful and drives the spirit in the team. We've got no complaints from him. You wouldn't even notice that his role in the leadership structure has changed. So, no concerns about Rishabh, and I can't wait to see him back again," he added.

Ten Doeschate also stressed the need for stability within the batting order, particularly at the crucial No. 3 position, while underlining that the team remains focused on building a settled Test combination.

"There's been a lot of changes in that spot (number 3), and that's not ideal. I think you need to look at the incumbents for that role and maybe stick with someone. It's a difficult position to bat and a very important position to bat," ten Doeschate said in a press conference.

India have experimented with multiple options at No. 3 following the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli from Test cricket. Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal and even Washington Sundar have all been tried in the role, but none has been able to firmly cement his place.

Ten Doeschate indicated that both Padikkal and Sudharsan remain in contention for the spot and suggested that whoever gets the opportunity would be backed for a longer period.

"Dev [Devdutt Padikkal] comes in with a ton of runs in domestic cricket across all the formats, and obviously Sai's got a nice IPL with Gujarat, so they're both in good form. I think whoever plays, they'll be given a bit of rope. It's quite difficult with one Test match now, and then we don't play a Test match for another two months, and then you play two Test matches, and then you don't play for a while," said ten Doeschate.

"So we need to factor that in, but I think the main point around is we want to make a decision and then trust that person to grow into the role and ideally quickly because where we find ourselves in the WTC table, it's obviously we don't have time to bet in now. It's probably something we could have done better, leading up to this is nailing down that number 3 spot," he added.

India's preparations for the Afghanistan Test have also involved helping players transition from the demands of the IPL to the longer format. Several members of the squad, including captain Gill, Sudharsan, Padikkal, Washington Sundar and Prasidh Krishna, were involved in the IPL final just five days before the Test.

Highlighting the challenge of adjusting from late-night T20 cricket to Test-match routines, ten Doeschate said sleep management had become a key area of focus.

"You're playing in the IPL final five days ago at night-time, and now you've got to come and start a Test match early in the morning at 34, 35 degrees. Just another challenge on the road, and the guys will take it on like they always do. My job is just to prepare the players for what's ahead of them. Sleep cycle is probably top of that list and that's been addressed," he concluded.

— ANI