LSG bowling coach Bharat Arun has claimed that Rishabh Pant has never been intimidated by the hefty price tag of Rs 27 crore, and it is just a matter of an innings or two for the great southpaw to make a comeback with the bat.
India’s great left-handed batsman Rishabh Pant was once known as one of India’s best three-format cricketers. However, as the years passed, he struggled to maintain his form, especially in white-ball cricket, and hence lost his place in the Indian limited-overs team.
Following his horrific accident in 2022, Pant returned to the game, ending an absence of over a year. Upon his return, his form has dropped severely, especially in the white-ball formats and also in the IPL. Pant has struggled to impress with the bat as well as his captaincy, having failed with his new franchise LSG in the last two seasons.
It’s an innings question – Bharat Arun backs Rishabh Pant
India won the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, and Rishabh Pant was a key part of the tournament; However, his contribution with the bat was limited. However, Pant has shown flashes of promising touch in red-ball cricket, a format in which he has completely dominated.
LSG team owners were happy and excited after buying Rishabh Pant even at a hefty price tag of Rs 27 crore, as the former DC captain became the most expensive cricketer ever in the history of IPL.
The wicketkeeper has failed to live up to the expectations of his hefty price tag, and many have argued that the price tag has acted as a shackle for the southpaw. However, LSG bowling coach Bharar Arun has finally backed him despite his poor form.
LSG bowling coach Bharat Arun said, “I don’t think Rishabh Pant has been burdened by the price tag (Rs 27 crore) in the last 2 years. He took us over the line in the second match. It is a question of an innings.”
Rishabh Pant has been deprived of runs since coming to LSG.
The 29-year-old veteran wicketkeeper batsman Rishabh Pant, who was once named as one of the most skilled and well-composed cricketers in the shortest format of the game, has suffered a severe dip in form in the last two seasons leading up to the IPL.
Pant has scored the least number of runs in the IPL in the last two seasons in his entire IPL career. He scored just 269 runs in 2025 with a century in the last game and has scored 189 runs after eight matches this season.
Another big concern for Rishabh is his strike rate, which has seen a significant decline as it has dropped from the 150-160 range in recent seasons to around 125-130 after his move to the Super Giants.
After dreadful home patch, LSG head to Wankhede in search of their third win of the season
The biggest negative for Lucknow Super Giants has been their poor form at home. The team seriously struggled to impress at home, winning most of the matches, including the last game against KKR, where they could not chase down a 150+ score despite a strong batting line-up.
Concluding their home match streak, they will head to the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai for their upcoming match against Mumbai Indians, who are ninth in the points table with the most defeats so far this season. The Sanjiv Goenka-owned team is now last on the points table with four points from eight matches and a poor net run rate.
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