Rishabh Pant’s Struggle Continues in Ranji Trophy 2024-25

Pant failed to even reach a combined total of 20 runs across both innings of this match. He was dismissed for just one run in the first innings. In the second innings, he managed only 17 runs off 26 balls before returning to the pavilion.

Following a disappointing performance in the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) against Australia, several Indian star players decided to participate in the second phase of the Ranji Trophy 2024-25. However, these players have also underperformed significantly. While captain Rohit Sharma failed to make a significant impact in the match between Mumbai and Jammu & Kashmir, wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant also struggled against Saurashtra.

Pant managed less than 20 runs in the two innings of this match. He was dismissed for just one run in the first innings and scored 17 runs off 26 balls in the second innings before returning to the pavilion. He hit one boundary in this inning. Ravindra Jadeja, who bowled exceptionally well in this match, dismissed Rishabh Pant.

Earlier, on the Australia tour, Pant scored 255 runs at a modest average of 28.33 in 10 innings across five matches. He scored 37 and 1 run in the Perth Test, 21 and 28 runs in the Adelaide Day-Night Test, and only 9 runs in the third Test at the Gabba. In the fourth match at the MCG, he was dismissed for 28 runs. However, he did score 40 and 61 runs in the first and second innings respectively in the final match at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG).

After consistently underperforming in ODIs and T20s, Pant is now struggling in Test matches as well. Due to his poor form, the team management dropped captain Rohit Sharma from the final Test against Australia. Virat Kohli is also under scrutiny. If Pant doesn’t improve his batting, he too might be dropped from the playing XI in the future, potentially making way for Dhruv Jurel.