Former India opener Aakash Chopra is surprised at Rishabh Pant’s continued omission from India’s T20I plans. The left-hander was not in consideration for the Asia Cup 2025 with Sanju Samson and Jitesh Sharma chosen as keeping options. Pant was part of India’s 2024 T20 world Cup squad, but has since only featured in Test cricket.
Very surprised no one talks about him: Aakash Chopra on Rishabh Pant’s T20I snub
Speaking on his Youtube channel, Aakash Chopra believes Rishabh Pant can still be a vital cog in India’s T20I plans. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar opted against the left-hander for the Asia Cup 2025 squad, partly down to his injury. Pant last played a T20I against Sri Lanka in 2024. Since then, he has lost his place with Sanju Samson taking up the spot. Jitesh Sharma’s impressive IPL catapulted him into the Asia Cup squad, while Dhruv Jurel was named among reserves.
“When Rishabh Pant bats at Nos. 1 to 3, he has scored his runs at a strike rate of 156 and has an average of 34, which is good. However, we will not talk about the top three. When you look at Nos. 4 to 7, he has a strike rate of 140 and an average of 30. It’s still okay,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.
‘IPL not being good one of the reasons’
Chances of Pant batting in the top order are slim to none. India already boast of Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal as opening options. However a lower order role could be looked at with India’s middle order not set. Hardik Pandya is a certainty, but Shivam Dube and Rinku Singh have themselves had middling IPL 2025 seasons. To Pant’s disadvantage, he himself had a forgettable IPL 2025 after being the most expensive signing in tournament history.
“The one thing that goes in his favor, and I am very surprised that no one talks about it, is that he was India’s third-highest run-scorer in the T20 World Cup we won. It seems like a fly has been taken out of milk and thrown away. No one is talking about him. Of course, the IPL not being that good might be one of the reasons, but not even coming into the conversation is a strange one,” Chopra added.
Pant has played 76 T20Is for India, scoring 1209 runs at an average of 23.25. His strike rate of 127.26 is far below his usual standards. The 27-year-old is certainly an X-factor pick, but with the likes of Shreyas Iyer struggling to make the team, chances for Rishabh seem slim at best.
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