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‘England will be challenging, he must not look to hit every ball’: Kapil Dev’s advice to Team India’s ‘valuable’ player
Kapil Dev stated that playing in English conditions will be challenging and Rishabh Pant needs to spend more time in the middle, instead of looking to hit every ball.
After a wonderful stint as Delhi Capitals captain in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, Rishabh Pant is gearing up for the upcoming England tour. Team India will be travelling to the United Kingdom to play New Zealand in the final of the World Test Championship which begins on June 18 in Southampton. Later, in the month of August, Virat Kohli & Co are also slated to square off against the hosts in a five-match Test series.
Following his heroic in the Test series Down Under, Rishabh Pant will be considered as the first-choice wicket-keeper in the tour. It’s his second visit to England for a Test series and former Indian captain Kapil Dev wishes to see him playing his part well.
While speaking to Mid-Day in an interview, the legendary all-rounder stated that playing in English conditions will be challenging and Pant needs to spend more time in the middle, instead of looking to hit every ball.
“He looks a very mature cricketer now from the time he came into the side. He seems to have far more time to play his shots and obviously his range of strokes is awesome. But England will be challenging. He must spend more time in the middle and not just look to hit every ball. We used to say the same about Rohit Sharma, who had so many shots, but would step out and get out so many times,” Kapil Dev was quoted as saying.
“Same is with Rishabh now. He is an exciting player and very valuable too. All I would tell him is take time before unfolding his range of shots. England is different,” he added.
The 1983 World Cup-winning skipper also spoke about his interest in watching Test cricket and said he loves watching full day’s play.
“Of course. I am a big fan of Test cricket. I love watching the full day’s play. If work keeps me away from the TV, I catch up with the highlights. I always watch as much as I can. There is nothing like Test cricket,” said Kapil Dev.
