Former Indian cricket team player Madan Lal, who won the 1983 World Cup, believes that Rishabh Pant can be the player who will prove instrumental if the Rohit Sharma-led side wants to win the T20 World Cup 2024. It will be first international tournament for Pant since his near-fatal car accident in 2022 but his form in IPL 2024 for Delhi Capitals came as good news for the selectors as well as the fans. In a recent interview, Lal called his comeback ‘superb’ and hailed him as one of the top batters in the world.
“In a word, it (Pant’s comeback) is superb. If India wants to win (the T20 World Cup), he needs to perform well. It is as simple as that. He is a class act. At the moment, he is one of the top batsmen in the world. It depends on him, what position the team gives him, and how they use him,” he told Times of India.
The decision taken by the selectors to not include Rinku Singh in the 15-member squad was met with a lot of criticism but Lal believes that considering Shivam Dube’s explosive form in the IPL right now, the selectors did the right thing by picking him ahead of Rinku.
“I think Shivam Dube has done quite well recently. And thus, the selection is ideal for me. He is the best hitter of the ball (at the moment). And that’s why I think they have picked Dube ahead of Rinku Singh.”
When it comes to the second wicket-keeping option, the selectors went with Sanju Samson ahead of KL Rahul and Dinesh Karthik. Lal was extremely pleased with Sanju’s inclusion in the squad but pointed out that not picking Rahul is a ‘mysterious case’ considering he can also be used as a specialist batter.
“I am happy with Sanju Samson’s selection because he has worked quite hard. He has been very consistent. The only thing that has gone against him is that he has not had enough chances at the international level. Otherwise, look at his batting, he is quite strong. KL is also very talented, and there is no doubt about that. It (not selecting Rahul) is another mysterious case,” he explained.
