Youngster Rishabh Pant has garnered a lot of criticism for his inconsistency in the pitch these days; however, former Indian captain Kapil Dev reckons that no one but Pant himself can silence his critics. The World Cup-winning captain, who was in Chennai to promote the upcoming film ‘83’ (based on India’s maiden World Cup victory back in 1983), advised the young southpaw to prove his detractors wrong with his exceptional talent.
Lately, Pant found himself at the receiving end of backlashes from critics and experts alike for his inconsistency and even the fans have voiced their discontent, chanting Dhoni’s name whenever the 22-year-old comes out to bat. The wicketkeeper-batsman suffered an injury in the first ODI against Australia in Mumbai when he was hit on the helmet by a Pat Cummins bouncer. During his absence KL Rahul took over the keeping duties and his sublime form with the bat has kept Pant out of the team even after his recovery. Dev, however, believes that Pant is very talented and has the capability to prove his doubters wrong.
“Pant is so talented. He cannot blame anybody. He has to look after his own career. The only way for him is to keep on getting runs and prove everybody wrong. When you are talented, it is your job to prove people wrong.”
“The players have to look after themselves. They should never give the option to the selectors to drop them or give them a rest” he added.
When asked about the speculations around former skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s retirement, Dev claimed that there will be a huge void to fill when MS decides to call it a day.
“He has served the country so well, for so many years. One day, he has to retire. It will be sooner rather than later. He has to go at some time. He is not playing matches. So, I don’t know when he is going to come out and say he has had enough. It will be our loss whenever he retires!”
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