Legacy Vs Performance: Will Pant find a place in India's '19 WC squad?
With talismanic wicket-keeper batsman, MS Dhoni not at his peak, wicket-keeper position in the cricket team is not a steady spot anymore. In recent times, we have seen many wicket-keepers such as Wriddhiman Saha, Rishabh Pant, Parthiv Patel, Dinesh Karthik are being tried.
One standout performer from that never-ending list is Rishabh Pant. The 21 years old Delhi boy, was recently received a call for the Indian team touring England. After smashing a ton in England, he continued his sublime form in the test series against Windies, which lead to the maiden call-up for ODI team against Windies.
Can Pant replace Dhoni ahead of 2019 World-cup? There is no second thought about what Dhoni can bring to the table for the Indian Cricket team. He has been the mastermind behind many of India's famous victories. With an average run in Asia Cup, many eyebrows are raised regarding Dhoni's performance with the bat, while there is no doubt regarding the glove-work.
Dhoni has scored 225 runs with an average of 28.13 so far in 2018. If we observe Dhoni's statistics in 2016,2017,2018 in ODI cricket, he has scored runs with an average of 27.80, 60.62,28.13 and with a strike rate of 80.12, 84.73, 67.37 respectively. Here, the strike rates are more alarming than the averages with which he has scored runs. With top three of Indian batting line-up firing regularly, Dhoni is expected to carry on the scoring rate throughout the innings.
In recent times, Dhoni himself along with many pundits of cricket has raised doubt on his strike rotating capability. As a lower middle order batsman, one is expected to have those big shots and strike rotating capability in his book. With Hardik, Kedar, Pant around, it will be tough for Dhoni to continue with these kinds of performances.
Even with Pant's inclusion in the ODI team, there are slim chances of him finding a place in playing XI as a wicket-keeper. Team management had given enough time to Dhoni to re-invent his batting abilities, but Dhoni has not been able to capitalize on those chances. On the other hand, not only Pant but also Dinesh Karthik has utilized their limited opportunities.
So, it is a matter of time that team management has to ask themselves that "Are we giving chances to Dhoni just for his clever tactics and brilliant glove-work behind the wicket or Dhoni has to add some value to Indian batting line-up?"
In past, we have seen some of the legends pushing their carrier too far, without giving the performance expected out of them. Is it the same case for Dhoni? There is no doubt about the fact that only Dhoni has the right to decide when to call it a day. Dhoni himself won't want to be a burden for the team. Management should have a word with Dhoni regarding his performances. With the World Cup knocking at the door, Management along with Kohli should have clear visibility regarding whom they want to give a ticket to the most prestigious Cricket tournament.