"Could he get me a 120 on his own?” - Former captain suggests new batting position for Rishabh Pant after SRH vs LSG IPL 2025 match
Former England captain Michael Vaughan has urged Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper Rishabh Pant to open the batting to maximize his ability in the upcoming IPL 2025 games. Vaughan's remarks came after LSG registered their first win of the season against the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) by five wickets.
Despite two strong team batting performances, Pant's individual numbers make for sorry reading thus far in IPL 2025. The southpaw was dismissed for a six-ball duck in LSG's opening game defeat to the Delhi Capitals (DC) and mustered only a run-a-ball 15 in the SRH clash.
Talking about Pant's ideal batting position in the LSG lineup, Vaughan told Cricbuzz:
"He's that player, like Pooran, because he can play at all positions - brilliant at the top, at No. 3 or 4, and play a great role at 5 and 6. But, fundamentally, I'll be looking and asking 'Could he get me a 120 on his own'? ' Yes, he can. Where's he likely to get a 120 from? At the top of the order."
Pant has opened only four times in his lengthy IPL career, with mixed results. The 27-year-old averages only 26 at a strike rate of 136.84 with a lone half-century at the top of the order.
"He can get bounced" - Michael Vaughan on Rishabh Pant
Michael Vaughan further believes opening the batting will help Rishabh Pant negate the threat of being bounced out inside the powerplay. Despite predominantly batting in the middle-order throughout his IPL career, the talented left-hander boasts outstanding numbers with 3,299 runs at an average of almost 35 and a strike rate of 148.20 in 113 outings.
"Rishabh coming in at No. 4, outside the powerplay, he can get bounced. Like Pat Cummins today bowling him a couple of beauties which shook him up a bit. Whereas in the powerplay, you can afford to try a bouncer but it's a huge risk. Because you flap it and it flies and with only two fielders outside the circle, it's going to go somewhere safe," said Vaughan in the aforementioned discussion.
He concluded:
"Whereas when all the fielders are out barring four, you can target a player like Rishabh Pant when he comes in at 4 outside the powerplay with two or three short balls. So that's two or three dot balls that you know you can put in under Rishabh as soon as he gets out there if you are a quick bowler. So, put him at the top of the order. He's got a 125 in him, get him at the top."
Incidentally, Pant has struggled as an opener even in T20Is for India, averaging a dismal 14.20 at a strike rate of 136.53 in five innings. With Aiden Markram struggling at the top and Pant looking out of sorts in the middle, it remains to be seen if LSG consider a straight swap between the duo in their next outing against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) on April 1.