Bengaluru: Rishabh Pant had one of the most spectacular beginnings in Test cricket, getting off the mark with a straight six off England’s Adil Rashid. The 20-year-old’s 51-ball 24 in the first innings and the seven catches he took behind the wickets at Nottingham were lauded, as India went on to win the Test by 203 runs. But young Rishabh, in his next four innings, has struggled with the bat. He’s made 1, 0, 18 and 5 (in the first innings of the ongoing Oval Test). But former Australian great Adam Gilchrist feels that he must be given enough time to adapt to Test cricket.
Glichrist, who was in the city, for taking part in a celebrity cricket league, spoke about Pant, Indian skipper Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni and more.
On Rishabh Pant
He looks a very exciting cricketer. He’s a Quinton de Kock type player in the way he bats and keeps. And we see a number of exciting cricketers come through the IPL. He’s another one who’s produced the goods and he’s been selected for India. So, it’s an exciting time for him. And, the challenge will be to perform at that level.
On Virat Kohli
He’s an absolute champion. I think the last England tour was the only time he was questioned of his abilities in a foreign land. He’s put that out of the equation now. He’s been really impressive even as India lost the series.
On filling the void created by MS Dhoni
It’s a challenging situation for any team. When Shane Warne finished, he left a big hole in the team. Same [in India] when the Big Four departed. And, MS Dhoni is as good a player as any in the ‘keeper-batsman position… plus he captained as well. So, it might take chopping and changing to find that player [who can replace him]. So, the selectors need to allow players [time] to settle into the top level. If you churn through them too quickly, it can leave a psychological scar on players’ minds and that might limit their efforts in being able to produce their best. So, hopefully Pant gets a nice run at it. Obviously, there’s an Australian tour up for grabs. I am sure India – even on the back of the disappointments and frustrations of England – certainly have an opportunity to make an impression. I think they’d enjoy batting in Australia. And the conditions could make way for a hard-fought Test series.
On the absence of Steve Smith and David Warner against India
It would be huge. Smith and Warner have provided the bulk of the runs in the Australian batting line-up for a number of years now. Without them, someone needs to step up and fill that void. So, it’s an opportunity for the rest of the batting line-up. So, clearly big shoes to fill. That will have a big impact on the series. We do still have a world class bowling line-up. With the three-four quicks and Nathan Lyon, it’s a challenging bowling line-up. The big challenge for Australia will be to get enough runs for the bowling line-up to defend.
On what touring teams lack (compared to Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting’s Australia)
Shane Warne and Glenn McGrath and a pretty handy top six batting line-up! (laughs)
I was fortunate to play in an amazing era of Australian cricket. You look at the West Indies of the 80s and early 90s. They travelled well. There are unique moments in each cricketing nation’s history… India travelled quite well in the early 2000s... in 2004 and 2008 in Australia. That was one of the best Indian sides, particularly with that batting line-up and they were well supported as the bowlers developed.
At the moment there are teams that play only play well at home. But it doesn’t bother me too much. It means that there’s always a nice carrot dangling there… to aspire to get to that level. It’s the same for us. We couldn’t win in India. We came in 2001, we didn’t win. We got close. The key was to learn from those failures, and we did that. And, when we came back in 2004, we changed our whole mindset and we didn’t attack as we’d normally do. And to win in ‘04 here was probably our greatest highlight.
On the temperament of current batsmen in Test cricket
I think high quality players can adjust and play across all formats. There’s probably the amount of limited-overs cricket, now T20 cricket, creeping into some of the batting and the lack of ability to bat long periods of time. But even in our period, there were a lot of Tests getting over in three of four days. But [matches getting over in three or four days] is something that all nations will be aware of. They will be trying to enhance the mindset of batting long periods of time than just going flat out.
On the channeling of aggression
It’s always nicer to win than lose. But I think everyone agrees that winning in a sporting manner is acceptable. It will be interesting to see how the Australian team plays their cricket. There’s a lot of talk about it.They’ll just be focussing on the best cricketers they can be and the best people they can be.