New Zealand vs India 2020: Virendra Sehwag questions the team management on dropping Rishabh Pant from the playing XI
Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag has backed wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant and opposed the team management on dropping the latter without clear communication between the two after the fourth T20I between India and New Zealand. The southpaw has been replaced by KL Rahul as India's first-choice wicketkeeper in white-ball cricket in recent times.
22-year-old Rishabh Pant, who suffered a concussion in the first ODI versus Australia, hasn't played for the men in blue since then. The team management ran out of patience after Pant struggled to show precision in his wicket-keeping and deliver with the bat as well.
India played a second-string team in the fourth T20I and opted to rest their senior players after sealing the series by a 3-0 margin. While the management rested the likes of Rohit Sharma, Mohammad Shami, and Ravindra Jadeja, Pant didn't get included in the playing XI.
While speaking to Cricbuzz live show, Sehwag questioned the management's decision of opting out on Rishabh Pant, after referring him as a match-winner earlier.
Rishabh Pant has been left out how will he score runs? If you bench Sachin Tendulkar also, he won't be able to score runs. If you feel he is a match-winner, why don't you play him? Because he is not consistent?
Sehwag also called in if current skipper Virat Kohli talked with the players before releasing them from the playing XI. Giving an example of former captain MS Dhoni, he also depicted how the top-3 then (Virendra Sehwag, Sachin Tendulkar, and Gautam Gambhir) also weren't aware of the rotation policy as they got termed as slow fielders.
During our time, captain used to go and talk with the player (in question). Now I don't know if Virat Kohli does the same or not. I am not part of the team setup. But people say that when Rohit Sharma went to Asia Cup as captain, he used to talk to all the players.
When MS Dhoni said in Australia that the top three are slow fielders, we were never asked or consulted. We got to know from the media. He said at the press conference but not at the team meeting that we are slow fielders.
The 41-year-old expressed that it is wrong if the players are unaware of getting axed from the side without knowing the actual cause to do so.
Talk at the team meeting was that we need to play Rohit Sharma who is new and that's why there will be rotation policy. If the same is happening now, that's wrong.
The hosts New Zealand suffered another collapse in the second-consecutive Super Over as India has gained 4-0 lead in the 5-match T20I series. Rishabh Pant will be hopeful of getting opportunities in the future, after remaining left out in the previous encounters.