New Delhi, April 10 – Former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif believes that Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain Rishabh Pant needs to take more responsibility as a captain and needs to find consistency in his approach after a lackluster batting performance in a thrilling win over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens.
Pant, who scored just 10 runs in the match, came under scrutiny from Kaif, who felt that the wicketkeeper-batter should have played a more significant role in the chase. “Rishabh Pant will not be happy with his 10-run innings. He played a match-winning innings against SRH in the previous game, helping LSG to win. But against KKR, the team needed him to stay till the end,” Kaif told Jio Hotstar.
The former batter emphasized that leadership comes with added responsibility, especially in pressure chases.
“As captain, if you don't take responsibility, you cannot help your team win games. Yes, he did well against SRH, but he needs to find consistency. Playing one good innings and then failing in the next few games is not enough,” Kaif added.
Chasing 182 at Eden Gardens, LSG got off to a strong start, reaching 41 in the first five overs. However, they lost momentum in the middle phase before a brilliant unbeaten 54 from Mukul Choudhary guided them to a last-ball, three-wicket win.
Kaif pointed out that the situation did not demand excessive risk when Pant walked in to bat.
“He is an experienced player, having been in the IPL since 2016. The situation when he came out to bat was not particularly difficult. LSG had already scored 41 in the first five overs. One batter needed to take responsibility and bat through the chase. That role was meant for Pant.
“He has to read the match situation better and learn when to shift gears. A captain’s job is to stay till the end in a chase, and that is something Pant must work on,” he noted.
Kaif also feels that Ajinkya Rahane’s captaincy was top-class in the game, and KKR did so many good things in the game, but lost the plot against Mukul, who played a match-winning knock of 54.
“I feel bad for Ajinkya Rahane because he had an amazing game as captain. This defeat against Lucknow will prove to be demoralising for KKR. They did so many things right in this game. Despite a very depleted bowling attack, they managed to put LSG under pressure. Sunil Narine and Anukul Roy bowled well. Vaibhav Arora’s first and even his second spell were not bad at all. Lots of things came together for them," he said.
"Cameron Green gave them a couple of overs, got a wicket, and showed he had the capability to score runs with the bat. It looked like a victory would complete the effort. But then Mukul Choudhary took the game away from KKR. Ajinkya Rahane and his men had the match almost in their hands, but a fearless knock from a prodigy turned things around,” he added.