'Krunal Pandya got nowhere near the ability that Rishabh Pant has…': LSG skipper's approach thrashed amidst poor form

Rishabh Pant continues to face scrutiny for his underwhelming batting form in the ongoing season of IPL. Pant, who became the most expensive player in league history with an INR 27 crore deal, has failed to live up to the expectations, as the mega price tag only makes things worse for him. The swashbuckling wicketkeeper batter has scored just 110 runs in 10 matches with a strike rate of 98.21.

The LSG skipper had another flop outing on Sunday, where he was dismissed for just four during a 216-run chase as his team suffered a crushing defeat against the Mumbai Indians.

Pant started off with a boundary off Will Jacks but attempted a reverse sweep on the second and ended up throwing his wicket away by getting caught by Karn Sharma.

Proteas legend Shaun Pollock was critical of Pant's batting approach and getting out after playing a reverse sweep on the second ball he faced.

"He got to the crease, he picked up a boundary off the very first ball. He almost bought himself 10 balls, where he could just knock it around, pick up the singles get a feel of the surface, and then look to cash in. But, they will tell you, "Oh, that is my natural game", to pull out the reverse sweep," Pollock said on Cricbuzz.

Pant's poor batting form coincides with LSG' patchy run in the league as they are placed sixth at the moment after 10 matches.

Pollock pointed out how Krunal Pandya constructed his innings for RCB in the tricky chase against Delhi Capitals and took his team over the line on Sunday. The RCB all-rounder looked a bit rusty at the start, but he picked up soon and ended up scoring 73 runs off 47 balls.

“Don't know how we explain Pant's shot selection”

The legendary SA all-rounder said that Krunal does not have the same ability as Pant, but he showed the maturity in a crunch situation that Pant has been lacking.

"Now we watch that game, where you see him do that, and then you watch Krunal Pandya, who has got nowhere near the ability that Pant has got, nowhere near the experience he has got, walked in a similar situation, he managed to get himself in and then he made them pay later. So, I don't know how we explain Pant's shot selection. In his mind, he must have felt that there was a shot on offer," Pollock added.