Madan Lal says he won’t give the captaincy to Rishabh Pant Indian right now: He’s a young player
Madan Lal has said that he will prevent Rishabh Pant from taking the India captaincy while he is still a young player.
Pant captained India in the series against South Africa (Allowed: AP)
HIGHLIGHTS
- Pant captained India in the series against South Africa
- The 24-year-old failed to make an impact with the stick against Proteas
- Lal said that Pant can be a captain candidate in two years
Former Indian cricketer Madan Lal has stated that he will prevent Rishabh Pant from becoming India captain right now as he feels the athlete is still a young player.
Pant recently led the Indian team in the recently concluded T20I series against South Africa after KL Rahul was ruled out due to injury. Despite losing their first two games, India bounced back and were able to level a 2-2 streak before the final game in Bengaluru was washed away. The 24-year-old hasn’t made any impact on Batman over the course of four games and he has faced a lot of criticism for that.
Speaking to Sports Tak, Lal stated that he would stop Pant from taking on the captain’s role as he is still very young. The World Cup champion went on to say that the 24-year-old goalkeeper will mature as he plays the game longer.
“I stopped him from becoming captain. Won’t allow it. Because such a player should later be assigned this responsibility. Being the captain of the Indian team is a big deal. He is a young player. He’s not going anywhere anytime soon. The longer he plays, the more mature he will become,” said Lal.
The former Indian cricketer compared Pant’s captaincy to MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli’s captaincy. Lal highlighted the fact that if the keeper can take his game to the next level within the next two years, then he could be considered a strong candidate for the captaincy.
“In the next two years, if he can take his game to the next level, then he can be a good captain who can handle things masterfully. This is a player of a different nature. MS Dhoni is a quiet and calm captain which suits him well as captain. Virat Kohli is a great smasher. I’m not saying Pant shouldn’t swing but if he could play a bit more proficiently that would be great,” said Lal.
