Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag who doesn’t mind speaking his heart out came out hard against Rishabh Pant and criticised him for his captaincy during the match against the Royal Challengers Bangalore which the Challengers won by a solitary run. Despite half-centuries from the blade of Shimron Hetmyer and Rishabh Pant, Delhi Capitals fell just one run short of the victory target.
Pant’s strike rate was questionable on occasions and at times especially during the final over, the Capitals needed Hetmyer at the strike more than Pant. Pant smashed a couple of fours in the final two deliveries albeit in a streaky fashion but DC still fell short by a run.
Virender Sehwag, one of the most destructive batsmen during his hey days, didn’t mince his words and lashed out at Pant for not using his main bowlers properly. The former dasher said that he won’t even give Pant 5 out of 10 for his captaincy against the Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Chasing a target of 172, the Capitals lost some early wickets but some lusty hitting by Hetmyer in the death overs brought DC back into the game. Mohammed Sirah eventually bowled a fantastic final over helping RCB to win the encounter by a solitary run.
“I won’t give him even five marks out of 10 for his captaincy because you just can’t make such mistakes. If your main bowler isn’t bowling, your calculations go wrong – that’s what captaincy is all about. You need to take care of that. A captain must manage his bowling resources according to the situation.
“You need to learn that. Or else you hand over the ball to whomsoever you want. The capability of a skipper is measured by how he turns the game around. He needs to make changes in the bowling or field position accordingly,” Sehwag was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz.
He further added that if Pant wants to play smart cricket he needs to be a smart captain giving him just 3 out of 10 for his captaincy against the Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore.
“So, if Rishabh Pant wants to become a good captain, he needs to keep these small things in his mind. Play smart cricket, then only you can become a smart skipper,” he added.