NEW DELHI: Former England skipper
Eoin Morgan
believes that
Rishabh Pant
has wasted no time in regaining his form after recovering from a serious car accident, making him a shoo-in for India's playing eleven at the
T20 World Cup
.
Despite being out of action for 14 months, Pant has made a remarkable comeback, scoring two half-centuries in just five games with an impressive strike rate of 154.54 in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
While there are other contenders for the wicketkeeper-batsman position, such as
Sanju Samson
, Ishan Kishan, and
Jitesh Sharma
, Pant's stellar performance in the IPL has elevated him to the top of the selection list. His ability to perform consistently and deliver impactful performances under pressure has made him the preferred choice for Morgan and many others.
Pant's remarkable comeback from adversity, coupled with his dynamic style of play, makes him a valuable asset for the Indian team, particularly in the high-stakes T20 World Cup tournament.
When asked why he would pick Pant over others, Morgan spoke with crystal clarity.
"(I would pick him) because he is the player that he is. I don't see him being hampered in anyway coming back from his car crash. For me he is a very disruptive player.
"As a leftie he can play a big role in the middle order and add a huge amount of pressure as opposed to generic right handers," said the ODI World Cup winning captain in his response to a PTI query during an interaction organised by Jio Cinema.
The selectors are anticipated to finalise India's squad for the ICC event in the first week of May, with former captain and batting maestro
Virat Kohli
expected to be a definite inclusion in the final fifteen.
'Very difficult to point fingers at Kohli for RCB's slide'
Morgan, known for his astute leadership, has emphasised that Kohli's impressive strike rate in the IPL should not be doubted, particularly considering the lack of support from other batters in the team.
Despite the ongoing nature of the IPL season, Kohli has surged to the top of the batting charts with an outstanding aggregate of 316 runs in just five innings, boasting a commendable strike rate of 146.29.
However, despite Kohli's stellar performance, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) find themselves at the bottom of the table, primarily due to underwhelming performances from other players.
"It is very difficult to point fingers at a guy who is the holder of the orange cap and the rest of the batting line is not scoring runs. I don't see a point in that. For RCB they are struggling with the bowling and the rest of the batting. Why would I place blame on someone who is scoring the majority of the runs," said Morgan.
'Mayank Yadav is really exciting, Sanju Samson standout captain'
Before Mayank Yadav was sidelined with fitness issues, the IPL rookie showcased his talent by delivering back-to-back Man of the Match performances in the tournament.
Demonstrating impressive pace, consistently clocking around the 150 kmph mark, Yadav posed a formidable challenge for opposing batters, hurrying them with his speed while also impressing cricketing legends with his accuracy and control.
"He is just an x-factor player. I am trying to remember after I first saw him ball, bowling upwards of 150kmph, who would have been the quickest Indian bowler that I would have played against. There is nobody who bowls quicker than he does or with the accuracy that he does. That is exciting."
On the best Indian captain in the IPL so far, Morgan picked Sanju Samson of Rajasthan Royals.
"If you look at Hardik Pandya, he had success in a short span of time with GT. Now he is with Mumbai and starting to turn things around. You can't put a price on winning, as a captain that is what you are judged on.
"Probably the stand out skipper has been Sanju Samson. I say that because of one key factor. His use of
Riyan Parag
, not just promoting him up the order at number four, shows how outspoken he has been about wanting him to bat at four.
"One of the hardest things to do as captain is to instill confidence and belief in a player to make them better players. Sanju has done with Riyan," highlighted Morgan.
'India's biggest challenge in T20 WC will be adapting to conditions'
In a couple of months, India will be trying to win an elusive ICC trophy. They play all their league games in the T20 World Cup in the USA before moving to the Caribbean for the Super Eight stage of the competition.
"India's biggest challenge in T20 WC will be adapting to conditions," said Morgan.
"They play Ireland and Pakistan in New York on a pitch we don't know what it is going to be like. It should be an excellent venue but there is no previous information about the pitch. For me that can cause issues.
"It is one of the hardest things. Winning away from home is about how you play conditions and in T20 it can be difficult," added Morgan.
(With PTI inputs)
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