After the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the Indian squad ahead of the three-match ODI series against the touring West Indies side, team vice-captain KL Rahul was made unavailable for the first match at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. 

In his absence, the wicket-keeper of the Men in Blue, Rishabh Pant has been announced as the new deputy in-command, albeit for just one match. From the second ODI onwards, which is also scheduled to take place at the same venue, Rahul will return to his duties.

As Pant makes his ascension to the role of vice-captain, former Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s press conference from 2017 has reemerged on the internet in which ‘Captain Cool’ has commented about how the wicket-keeper of the squad is always the vice-captain of the team, even if the cricket board doesn’t announce it officially.

According to Dhoni, the responsibilities of setting up the field during the match is often given to the wicket-keeper and it is he who needs to make the necessary changes while taking into consideration the inputs from his captain.

While Pant’s consideration to be a part of the leadership group in limited-overs cricket may be short-lived, the discussions around him being made the next Team India captain in Test cricket continue to grow stronger.  

In the eyes of the fans and multiple cricket experts, at the moment, the white-ball captain of the team, Rohit Sharma is leading the race to being crowned the leader in the longest format of the game as well. However, Pant’s chances of making it are not that far-fetched either.

Another point that many cricket analysts have raised is that Rohit Sharma will turn 35 years old in April and may have only a couple of years of captainship in him. Therefore, it is equally important for the BCCI to start nurturing the younger players like the 24-year old Pant who is expected to become the face of Indian cricket once names like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma take a backseat. 

In terms of getting experience as a leader, Rishabh Pant did surprisingly well as the skipper of the Delhi Capitals franchise during the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League and took his team to the playoffs while being the number one seed based on the points table. With the 2022 season expected to start on March 27, Pant will return in his role as the captain and once again try to bring the trophy to Delhi.

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