Former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis said that Rishabh Pant needs to be a more impressive player to find consistency in the T20 format ahead of the new season of IPL 2026. Pant is one of India’s key players in Tests but has failed to replicate the same form in white-ball cricket. The wicket-keeper batsman last played ODIs and T20Is for India in 2024 and has remained on the sidelines since then.
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As for the IPL, despite its fast-paced and unorthodox style, Pant has 3553 runs in 125 matches at an average of 34.16 and a strike-rate of 147.61. In the 2025 season, the LSG skipper managed to score 269 runs in 14 matches, including a hundred in the final group match against Lucknow. But his average was 24.45 and his strike rate was just over 133.
Speaking to JioStar, Du Plessis said that Pant needs to find a game plan when it comes to T20 cricket to give himself the best chance to excel in the format. The former South African captain said that Pant is almost like a top player at the moment and needs to change that to become more successful.
“Rishabh Pant’s batting game is one that looks all over the place. He has a method and a game plan in his head. He has a plan for how he wants to play Test cricket. The same is true in T20 cricket. He needs to figure out exactly what his game plan looks like to give himself the best chance. Not being a ten or two player but within 6 per cent of a possible ten he can have consistency,” Du Plessis said.
“To do that, you can’t think every ball ahead of time. That’s too high a risk. Yes, you can hit a few sixes and play a few good innings. But when teams turn to him, he’s good enough to have something else in his arsenal to hit through the offside. His game plan is not one-dimensional. He can score all over the ground. For me, it’s about his player being almost like the first six balls to watch him. a player with a big impact in terms of what he can put up in his numbers.”
HOW CAN SOME PANTS HAVE 130 MAINTENANCE?
Du Plessis said Pant seems to have too many options in his mind when it comes to batting in the T20 format and said he needs to have a method to his game. The former South African skipper felt that Pant is always on edge when it comes to his batting and there is almost a feeling that he must be good in T20s given his performances in Tests.
“The talent that Rishabh Pant has is tremendous. You look at him playing Test cricket and you think, this guy has got all the shots. When I look at his game, I feel he has too many options in his head. He feels like he can hit a six off every ball to any part of the ground. But in T20 batting you still need a method. You need a game plan for all the players. an idea of where they are going to get their borders and where they have minor weaknesses.’
“With Pant, I feel he’s always on the edge. When you watch him play, you feel he can get out at any time because it’s almost frantic at times. The surprising number for me is his T20 strike rate, which is around 130. How is that possible for a guy with so many runs? Maybe it’s because we watch him in Test cricket play these extravagant games that should become almost extravagant, in exuberance. T20 cricket too,” said Du Plessis.
As for his batting role, Pants are expected to bat at No.3 for LSG during the IPL 2026 season.
Catch all the action from TATA IPL 2026, March 28 onwards, LIVE on JioHotstar and Star Sports Network
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Published on:
March 25, 2026 12:26 PM IST
