England vs India | Rishabh Pant opening in T20Is is hopefully going to be a watershed moment: R Sridhar
India Today
India tour of England: Former fielding coach R Sridhar and former batter Sanjay Manjrekar welcomed India's decision to open the batting in T20Is with Rishabh Pant. Pant hit a quickfire 26 while batting at the top in India's win in Birmingham on Saturday.
Former India fielding coach R Sridhar welcomed the idea of Rishabh Pant opening the batting in T20I cricket, saying it might prove to be a watershed moment for the Indian side. Sridhar said the wicketkeeper-batter has the ability to instil fear in the opposition camp and take the focus off the other end.
Sridhar's comments came after Rishabh Pant opened for the first time in T20I cricket during India's 49-run win over England in the 2nd of a three-match T20I series in Birmingham on Saturday.
Pant replaced Ishan Kishan in the batting unit and walked out to open with captain Rohit Sharma. The left-hander hit 26 off just 15 balls as India raced to 49 for no loss inside the 5th over.
Sridhar, speaking to Sony Sports, lauded Rohit for the move and explained why he believes Pant can succeed as an opener, much like Sachin Tendulkar did when he was promoted to open in ODIs in 1994.
" Hopefully, it's going to be a watershed moment like it happened in 1994 when someone put Mr. Tendulkar at the top," Sridhar said of Pant's promotion to the opening spot.
"I think to start with, a left-hander at the top is very, very important. He can make bowling ridiculously silly, and he will walk the talk like Rohit is doing.
"He will play the way he would want the team to play. He will put off the bowling unit. He will create fear and all the bowlers will focus on him. It will open up the other end," Sridhar said.
