Just when it looked like Rishabh Pant was getting back in form, he played an inning that confused many people. Fans cheered when he hit those big sixes, but between those moments, the silence of dot balls spoke louder than the boundaries.

Advertisment

On Monday (Apr 15), Lucknow Super Giants Skipper, Pant scored 63 runs off 49 balls against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. His knock showed signs of returning to form as previously he had managed to score just 40 runs in his last five innings. But even with his highest score of the season, his strike rate and approach came under the scanner.

Also Read - IPL 2025 | MS Dhoni not amused with POTM award after CSK beat LSG, says 'why me'

Pant walked in after LSG lost two early wickets in the powerplay. He started well, racing to 27 off 16 balls. But things took a strange turn, at one point as he was 38 off 38 balls. His strike rate dipped down from 168 to 100. The LSG skipper especially struggled against the Afghan spinner Noor Ahmad, scoring only six runs off 15 balls and playing 10 dot balls against him.

Advertisment

In total, Pant played 21 dot balls in his innings. His dot-ball percentage this season is the worst among batters who’ve faced at least 50 balls — 48.48%. His overall strike rate stands at just 104.04 which is lower than the potential he has.

Former India opener Wasim Jaffer wasn’t too impressed. “I don’t know whether he looks to do that [rotate strike],” Jaffer said on ESPNcricinfo TimeOut. “Kohli is a master at that… Pant sometimes does get stuck… He needs to get better at rotating strike.”

Jaffer also noted how Pant rarely hits down the ground: “He always looks to go towards the leg side… I think he needs to access down the ground a lot more.”

Advertisment

Abhinav Mukund added, “I like Pant when he is moving around… It felt like that cover area was closed today for business for him and that’s a bit concerning.”

Even with runs coming, Pant’s approach for rotating strikes during the middle over still needs work.