ICC World Cup 2019: Rishabh Pant flies to England as back up for Dhawan

Rishabh Pant's omission from the original squad had become a topic of heated debates given his stupendous form in the past one year.

Young wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant was Wednesday brought in as cover for the injured Shikhar Dhawan in India's World Cup squad.

Pant, whose omission from the original squad became a topic of heated debates given his stupendous form in the past one year, will reach here Wednesday.

His arrival will be a day before India's game against New Zealand and he won't be considered a replacement till the time the team management takes a final call on Dhawan's availability for the rest of the tournament.

ALSO READ: Injured Shikhar Dhawan under observation, will remain in England: BCCI

"Rishabh Pant is being flown in from India as cover at the request of the team management," a senior BCCI official currently in England told PTI.

The 21-year-old is one of the most exciting players to have emerged in Indian cricket. He impressed with Test hundreds during the tours of England and Australia earlier and was in fine form during the IPL last month.

Several former players such as Sunil Gavaskar advocated for his inclusion in the squad if Dhawan fails to recover quickly enough for India. Dhawan has been ruled out of three matches due to a hairline fracture on his left thumb which he sustained during his match-winning hundred in the clash against Australia on Sunday.

"...Dhawan is presently under the observation of the BCCI medical team. The team management has decided that Dhawan will continue to be in England and his progress will be monitored," the Indian team said in a statement on Wednesday night.

"Dhawan sustained an injury on the back of his left hand in the region between the index finger and thumb...," it added.

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World Cup: Nice guy, finish first! selectors' veiled advice to Rishabh Pant

Chief selector MSK Prasad said 'Pant was almost there' but finishing matches was the important point where they felt 33-year-old Karthik had an advantage over 21-year-old Rishabh Pant.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on April 15 announced the 15-member national squad for the ICC World Cup 2019 to be held from May 30 in England and Wales.

There were 4-5 slots up for grab as it was evident that remaining seats would go to known names.

ALSO READ: India's 15-player World Cup 2019 squad announced: Check who's in, who's out

Till recently, Rishabh Pant had all in his favour and he was seen as a potential batsman to end India's no. 4 conundrum.

But the selectors had some other plans, they wanted a player who could provide more dimensions (bat, bowl and field) or could finish the matches.

Pant is a new weapon in India's batting arsenal and in a short span he has earned the trust and praise of veteran to active players.

Chairman of selectors, MSK Prasad said, "We all (agreed) that either Rishabh Pant or Dinesh Karthik will come in if Mahi (MS Dhoni) is injured. If it's a crucial match, wicket-keeping is also important. That's the reason we went with Dinesh Karthik. Otherwise, Pant was almost there."

But he later added that finishing the matches was the important factor where 33-year-old Karthik had an advantage over 21-year-old Rishabh Pant.

“That is exactly what we discussed. I’m saying one of the wicketkeepers will make it only if MS is injured. Under pressure, we have seen Karthik finishing matches,” he said.

However, BCCI on April 17 named Rishabh Pant, veteran batsman Ambati Rayudu and young pacer Navdeep Saini as standbys for the tournament.

In January 2019, Pant was named the ICC Emerging Player of the Year at the 2018 ICC Awards. Recently he was given level A contract by the BCCI.

In December 2015, he was named in India's squad for the 2016 Under-19 Cricket World Cup. He made his Twenty20 International (T20I) debut for India in January 2017. A year later, he made his Test debut in August 2018, and just two months later, his One Day International (ODI) debut in October 2018.

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BCCI annual contracts: Dhawan, Bhuvi demoted; Pante gets category A deal

Senior opener Shikhar Dhawan and pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar were on Thursday dropped from the highest category of central contracts for India players.

Acknowledging Rishabh Pant's consistent performance, the BCCI has rewarded the young wicketkeeper-batsman with a grade A retainership while demoting senior opener Shikhar Dhawan from the elite A plus category in the latest list of Central Contracts.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the annual contracts late on Thursday night, handing retainership to 25 cricketers in four groups of A plus (Rs 7 crore), A (Rs 5 crore), B (Rs 3 crore) and C (Rs 1 crore).

(Business Standard)

Last year 26 players were handed contracts.

Not only Dhawan but pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar has also been dropped from the highest-paying category and now only three players -- skipper Virat Kohli, limited overs deputy Rohit Sharma and premier pacer in all formats speedster Jasprit Bumrah -- figure in the elite category.

While left arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed and batsman Hanuma Vihari are new entrants in the C group.

Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw and Vijay Shankar, who have made impression in Tests and limited overs respectively, have not been included in the list since they do not meet the criteria of having played either three Tests or eight ODIs.

It seems to be curtains for veterans Murali Vijay and Suresh Raina, who have been dropped from the list after being in A and C group in last year's list. They are no longer in reckoning for national team.

The biggest gainer is 21-year-old Pant, who wasn't a part of the last year's list but directly made it to the A group with 10 others.

Pant is expected to be a first choice in all formats once MS Dhoni retires. He was rewarded for being the first Indian keeper to score Test hundred in England and Australia.

Chinaman Kuldeep, who has become India's frontline spinner in all three formats, has been promoted to A from the B category.

The notable loser was Dhawan, who has had dip in form in last six months in ODIs. He was also dropped from the Test squad before the Australia series.

Bhuvneshwar also lost out on A plus category as he is no longer an all- format certainty.

The same logic was applied to Cheteshwar Pujara as he was retained in A category contract.

Rishabh Pant equals world record of most catches in a Test by wicket keeper

He eclipsed the India record of 10 catches in a game by Wriddhiman Saha, as the visitors won the opening game by 31 runs to go 1-0 up in the four-match series.

India Vs Australia : Rishabh Pant Monday equalled the world record of most catches in a Test by a wicketkeeper, snaring 11 in the first match against Australia while breaking the Indian mark.

The 21-year-old is now level with Englishman Jack Russell (vs South Africa at Johannesburg in 1995) and South Africa's AB de Villiers (vs Pakistan at Johannesburg in 2013).

He eclipsed the India record of 10 catches in a game by Wriddhiman Saha, as the visitors won the opening game by 31 runs to go 1-0 up in the four-match series.

Rishabh Pant equalled the world record after taking Mitchell Starc's catch off Mohammed Shami's ball in the second innings at the Adelaide Oval.

The wicketkeeper caught six batsmen in first innings and five in the next on way to the record.

In the first innings, Pant was involved in the dismissals of Usman Khawaja, Peter Handscomb and Tim Paine before pouching on to edges off Starc, Travis Head and Josh Hazlewood's willow.

When India bowled again, he played a role in the departure of openers Marcus Harris and Aaron Finch, followed by Shaun Marsh, Peter Handscomb, Paine and Starc.

Pant equalled the India record when he took his tenth catch of the match -- a top edge off Australia skipper Tim Paine.

"It was nervous as they were coming close, but we did well. I'm happy to contribute to the team. I always enjoy troubling batsmen, I love it when they concentrate on me and not on the bowlers," said Pant, who was heard egging on the bowlers on the stump mic.

In the first innings, Pant had equalled Mahendra Singh Dhoni's record of most catches (six) by an Indian wicketkeeper in a Test innings.

Pant, who is playing only his sixth Test, was selected in the Indian team following an injury to Saha.

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IPL 2018: Pant's 128 in vain as SRH hand DD humiliating 9-wicket defeat

Rishabh Pant's 128 went in vain as Shikhar Dhawan and Kane Williamson won the match for Sunrisers Hyderabad with comfort. SRH confirm their place in playoffs

In the 42nd match of the VIVO Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018, Sunrisers Hyderabad defeated Delhi Daredevils by 9 wickets at the Firoz Shah Kota stadium in Delhi, hitting a perfect purple patch. With this, Hyderabad ended Delhi's chances for playoffs too. SRH retain their top spot on the VIVO IPL  points table. After Rishabh Pant wreaked havoc on SRH bowlers that propelled Delhi's score to 187 runs, it was Hyderabad's time to hand a strong reply.

Master at defending low totals, SRH had a different challenge today, a long chase ahead of them and they pulled a composed one. Earlier, Delhi Daredevils won the toss and decided to bat first against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Delhi's entire inning revolved around one man --Rishabh Pant, who made a spectacular century and bailed out his team. No bowler could escape his wrath, even Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Pant emerged past everything to make a mark. No matter what, he had everyone chanting his name in the stadium and was a sheer spectacle.

Delhi openers Prithvi Shaw and Jason Roy were dismissed in consecutive deliveries by Shakib Al Hasan. Just as Delhi was on the road to recovery, Pant committed a blunder by denying a run to Shreyas Iyer at the eleventh hour, he was too late to return to the crease.

Along with Hyderabad,  Rishabh Pant  continued to give a hard time to his own teammates who were struggling to coordinate with him for running between the wickets. Pant committed another error during running between the wicket, Harshal Patel had to pay the price this time. Finding himself Guilty for the gaffes, Pant vented his anger on bowlers. He only settled for a century. Just as Hyderabad got on the job, Harshal Patel removed Alex Hales. Things went in

Delhi's direction till that far only, after that, it was Hyderabad's show. Dhawan got into the role soon and smashed some powerful boundaries. Hyderabad had taken a lead in the match by denying any wicket after the first blow.

Dhawan and Williamson saw no resistance whatsoever from any bowler. Dhawan and Williamson raised their bats for their fifty respectively. The lacklustre bowling proved harmful and the match had become a one-sided affair.

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