Rishabh Pant did not feature in any cricket game throughout 2023. However, he is set to have a place in India’s squad for the T20 World Cup 2024. Some analysts believe the wicketkeeper does not deserve a first-choice space among wicketkeepers to the tournament.
Pant was involved in an accident in December 2022 and had to stay out of competitive cricket for over a year. The cricketer roared back to form at IPL 2024 with over 340 runs after nine innings. He also boasts a 161.3 strike rate and 48.9 average.
Pant continues to deliver performances, but fans are wary about his long hiatus from cricket. Other fans believe he is still rusty and needs some time to rediscover his 2018/19 run of form.
Has Rishabh Pant Done Enough to be India’s First-Choice Wicketkeeper at T20 WC?
Logically, Rishabh has not done enough to secure the first-choice wicketkeeper’s role for Team India at the T20 WC. He has had to work through a long recovery period and only has few IPL games under his belt. However, two other major contenders for his role put in consistent performances across seasons, especially during his absence from the game.
Who are the Contenders for an Opening Wicketkeeper Slot for India at T20 WC 2024?
Sanju Samson
Rajasthan Royals skipper and versatile batter Sanju Samson continues to put in impressive performances at the IPL. His consistent outings for RR puts him in strong consideration as a first-choice wicketkeeper for Team India.
Dinesh Karthik
Karthik is not a new face in India’s T20 international circle, but his recent form puts him in the conversation for a starting role. The cricketer’s IPL 2024 performances have been impressive so far, and he could challenge Pant as a first-choice wicketkeeper.
Likely Selection Categories for Team India Cricketers to the T20 WC 2024
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection committee are currently working to field a team at the T20 WC. BCCI Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar has a tough task ahead seeing that India has a massive talent pool in every position. As things stand, this is the current situation of selections based on an exclusive news report and analyses:
| Will Feature | Likely to Feature | Contending to Feature | Unlikely to Feature |
| Ravindra Jadeja | Rinku Singh | Avesh Khan | Abhishek Sharma |
| Suryakumar Yadav | Shubman Gill | KL Rahul | Bhuvneshwar Kumar |
| Jasprit Bumrah | Yashasvi Jaiswal | Tilak Varma | Deepak Chahar |
| Rohit Sharma | Shivam Dube | Riyan Parag | Deepak Hooda |
| Virat Kohli | Axar Patel | Mukesh Kumar | Dhruv Jurel |
| Rishabh Pant | Kuldeep Yadav | Ruturaj Gaikwad | Harshal Patel |
| Hardik Pandya | Sanju Samson | Arshdeep Singh | Jitesh Sharma |
| Dinesh Karthik | Mayank Yadav | ||
| Mohammed Siraj | R Ashwin | ||
| Shardul Thakur | Ravi Bishnoi | ||
| Ishan Kishan | Shreyas Iyer | ||
| Tushar Deshpande | |||
| Washington Sundar | |||
| Yuzvendra Chahal | |||
Rishabh Pant Career Stats
Rishabh Pant Batting and Fielding Stats
| FORMAT | Mat | Inns | NO | Runs | HS | Ave | BF | SR | 100s | 50s | 4s | 6s | Ct | St |
| Tests | 33 | 56 | 4 | 2271 | 159 | 43.67 | 3084 | 73.63 | 5 | 11 | 246 | 55 | 119 | 14 |
| ODIs | 30 | 26 | 1 | 865 | 125 | 34.6 | 811 | 106.65 | 1 | 5 | 90 | 26 | 26 | 1 |
| T20Is | 66 | 56 | 12 | 987 | 65 | 22.43 | 781 | 126.37 | 0 | 3 | 86 | 37 | 27 | 9 |
| FC | 57 | 92 | 7 | 4123 | 308 | 48.5 | 4999 | 82.47 | 10 | 19 | 440 | 136 | 189 | 21 |
| List A | 66 | 60 | 5 | 1783 | 135 | 32.41 | 1704 | 104.63 | 2 | 11 | 183 | 58 | 69 | 11 |
| T20s | 188 | 177 | 31 | 4696 | 128 | 32.16 | 3218 | 145.92 | 2 | 25 | 426 | 217 | 117 | 32 |
(stats are accurate as of April 28, 2024)
Rishabh Pant Bowling Stats
| FORMAT | Mat | Inns | Balls | Runs | Wkts | BBI | BBM | Ave | Econ | SR | 4w | 5w | 10w |
| Tests | 33 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| ODIs | 30 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| T20Is | 66 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| FC | 57 | 1 | 12 | 9 | 1 | 1/9 | 1/9 | 9 | 4.5 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| List A | 66 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| T20s | 188 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
(stats are accurate as of April 28, 2024)
India T20 World Cup 2024 Group Schedule
| Date | Match Details | Venue |
| Jun 05, 2024 | India vs Ireland, 8th Match, Group A | Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York |
| Jun 09, 2024 | India vs Pakistan, 19th Match, Group A | Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York |
| Jun 12, 2024 | United States vs India, 25th Match, Group A | Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York |
| Jun 15, 2024 | India vs Canada, 33rd Match, Group A | Central Broward Regional Park Stadium Turf Ground, Lauderhill, Florida |
