In what can only be described as a tactical blunder, Lucknow Super Giants chose to hold back their captain, Rishabh Pant, until the final two deliveries of the innings during their heavy eight-wicket defeat to Delhi Capitals. With the side struggling for momentum after electing to bat first, the decision to promote Abdul Samad, who managed just 2 off 8 balls, ahead of Pant backfired spectacularly.
The decision invited strong criticism from experts Shane Watson, Suresh Raina, Anil Kumble, and Harbhajan Singh, who were all baffled with Pant arriving to the crease with only two balls remaining in the innings. During the Hindi broadcast of the match, Saba Karim, too, was surprised at the tactical decision.
“Strategy? It’s beyond my understanding. You are the captain. You are handed this responsibility, and the reason for it is that you can add value to the team. And this was your time,” Saba said.
Saba questioned Pant’s captaincy, stating that he had to lead by example when Nicholas Pooran was dismissed in LSG’s innings.
“Rishabh Pant was ready. But who took the call to not send him? Was it Pant himself? Was it team management? Was coach involved? Visuals show that Pant was upset at not playing earlier.
“But, you’re the captain. In the end, the team is playing under you. You have to lead by example. There’s no point of coming to bat for 2 balls. You were needed when Nicholas Pooran was dismissed and LSG were under pressure. The only positive was Ayush Badoni coming near the end and playing his shots,” said Saba.
Pant’s reaction
Pant’s post-match justification did little to inspire confidence. The wicketkeeper-batter said that the idea was to “capitalise” on the surface with Samad, followed by David Miller, who also failed to find fluency.
“The Idea was to capitalise. We sent Samad to capitalise on a wicket like that. After that, Miller came in, and we just really got stuck in the wicket. Eventually, these are the things we have to figure out and try to find our best combination going forward,” he said after the match.
With Lucknow managing only 159/6, clearly under-par on a pitch that was expected to ease out under lights, the skipper’s delayed entry has now raised questions about strategy and leadership clarity.
