IND vs SA 2022: “He’s not fitted into any role” - Ajay Jadeja feels lack of clarity behind Rishabh Pant’s T20I failures

Ajay Jadeja reckons that the lack of clarity over Rishabh Pant's role in the T20I team has been one of the key factors behind the keeper-batter's inability to deliver in the format so far. Comparing Pant to Dinesh Karthik, the former India cricketer pointed out that the latter is aware of his exact role in the team.

With KL Rahul being rested for the third T20I against South Africa in Indore on Tuesday, October 4, Team India sent Pant out to open with Rohit Sharma. The southpaw flourished briefly, before being dismissed for 27 off 14 balls.

Reflecting on yet another failure for the left-hander in T20Is, Jadeja pointed out that the think tank hasn’t found a specific part for Pant in the format. During a discussion on Cricbuzz, he said:

“Because the Indian team has moved on to role-playing act, and he’s not fitted into any role, that’s where he has lost out. DK played a fabulous knock. With that role-play that he is doing, it works. If he wasn’t in that role-play business, and was batting at No. 4 like the early part of his career, then, 46 on this surface, how can you throw it away?"

🔹 Pant - open
🔸 Rohit - No. 4

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Pant looked dangerous during his short stay out in the middle in the Indore T20I. He clubbed Lungi Ngidi for two fours and two sixes in the fifth over, before perishing to the Proteas pacer in the same over.

“You’ve gone through this. Show me the way” - Jadeja urges Pant to learn from DK

Analyzing Pant’s T20I woes, Jadeja opined that he could learn a lot from Karthik, who went through a similar phase for most of his international career. The former India cricketer elaborated:

“He’s got a mate in DK to learn from. He can ask him, ‘listen, what do I need to do? Is there something I am missing out on? You’ve gone through this. Show me the way.’ No matter how big a fan I am, how long will you persist with him? There is no dearth of talent, and it is just this format. So it is something that he has to figure out.”

Admitting that the southpaw missed a great opportunity to make a mark in Indore, just ahead of the T20 World Cup, Jadeja concluded:

“He doesn’t have to go too far, he has to look at his batting partner. It’s taken Karthik 15 years for the team to start believing and accepting. DK had similar talent. The team kept bringing him back. But if you don’t deliver, the team leaves you out eventually, somewhere.”

Danish Kaneria feels Sanju Samson should have been picked ahead of Rishabh Pant for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022 👀🇮🇳

#SanjuSamson #RishabhPant #danishkaneria #India #TeamIndia #CricketTwitter #T20WorldCup2022 https://t.co/2xBxE4aCfi

While Pant was dismissed for 27 on Tuesday, Karthik contributed 46 off 21. India went down by 49 runs in Indore as they were bowled out for 178 while chasing 228.