Former Indian batting coach Abhishek Nayar has put his weight behind Rishabh Pant to play his natural game after India registered a comprehensive innings and 300-run win against Afghanistan at New Chandigarh.
This is India’s biggest Test win as they were too good for the visitors. Pant played an impressive knock in the first innings of the one-Test match against Afghanistan at New Chandigarh on Saturday but was dismissed while trying to play a big shot. Pant scored 81 runs off 121 deliveries with the help of six fours and three sixes.
The southpaw had the rub of the green on his side as Afghanistan didn’t go for the review when he edged the ball to the wicket-keeper when he was on 54.
This was a crucial knock for Pant as he was coming after a mundane performance in IPL 2026. The left-hander could only manage 312 runs in 13 innings of the season at an average of 28.36 and a strike rate of 138.05. Subsequently, he resigned from his captaincy position with LSG.
Nayar highlighted that Pant is known to make a positive impact when he bats aggressively in the middle order.
“I believe he doesn’t need to change anything, and he doesn’t need to show anything to anyone. Many runs don’t have any significance, but his runs are always counterattacking runs, and he has won matches by scoring runs when the team’s back is against the wall. He has won Test matches not only in India but also in SENA countries,” Abhishek Nayar said on Star Sports.
“I would want Pant to remain the master of his own will. Even if he fails, he has to fail on his terms. Judge him on his performances and give him the freedom to play how he wants. If every player starts playing one way, Vaibhav Suryavanshi won’t become Vaibhav Suryavanshi, and Rishabh Pant won’t become Rishabh Pant. Everyone will bat like an AI robot, and one doesn’t want that,” he added.
On the other hand, former Indian leg-spinner Piyush Chawla hailed Rishabh Pant for playing the situation well against Afghanistan.
“He played the situation extremely well. How many times have we seen him only defending for 20-odd balls? He wasn’t even trying to hit a four. Many players, when they defend, either the face of their bat opens slightly, and the ball goes towards point, or else the ball goes towards square leg if the bat face closes,” he said.
Pant would look to continue the good form in the next Test series against Sri Lanka.
