Rishabh Pant, earlier this week, was named as the captain of the Delhi Capitals after Shreyas Iyer was ruled out for the entirety of this season’s Indian Premier League (IPL), owing to a shoulder injury.
Pant’s batting and glovework has improved immensely, which has been instrumental in Team India’s success across formats. Over the past few months, Pant has played some odds-defying knocks to win the game for India.
In the same light, former Indian wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel picked Pant as the X-Factor for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2021, also adding that he need not try and be like MS Dhoni as he himself is a brilliant player.
“I think Rishabh Pant. Because if he wasn’t in his best of form last season, this year the way he has batted for India, I think he carries a lot of confidence with him and that’s what you want when you are playing a T20 game,” Patel said on Star Sport show Game Plan.
“You don’t want any doubts in your mind and especially a player like Rishabh Pant. He was burdened with the comparison of MS Dhoni and he also tried to do that, but he himself is a brilliant player,” he added.
IPL 2021 kick starts on April 9 with two-time defending champions Mumbai Indians taking on Royal Challengers Bangalore in the opener in Chennai. DC, meanwhile, will open their campaign, interestingly, against the MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings on April 10.
“He doesn’t have to worry about being like MS Dhoni. He can be better than MS Dhoni or he can win matches on his own every given time. So, I think Rishabh Pant will be probably holding the key for Delhi Capitals,” he concluded.
Pant, has been often regarded as the successor of MS Dhoni, across formats. After being named as the captain of the DC for the upcoming season of the IPL, Pant took to Twitter and wrote:
“Humbled at the opportunity to lead the franchise I’ve been part of for the past few years! Thank you @RickyPonting, the coaching staff, management, my teammates and the fans for your faith in me. @DelhiCapitals: Let’s do this! #IPL2021.”