On Friday, the flamboyant Rishabh Pant acknowledged that leading in a one-off Test is not the “best scenario,” but he is not overly concerned about the challenge posed by a well-knit South Africa in the second Test here.
Pant was appointed captain after the regular skipper, Shubman Gill, was released from the squad due to injury ahead of the match starting on Saturday.
“One-off match is not best scenario for a captain but I am thankful to BCCI for giving me this honour. Sometimes, if you think too much about a big occasion, it doesn’t help,” Pant was quoted as saying at the pre-match press conference on Friday.
“(I) don’t want to over-think. We had a tough first Test and we need to do whatever is required to win the Test,” he added.
Pant mentioned that the team management has already decided on Gill’s replacement for the game but did not reveal the name.
“We have taken a decision on who will play in place of Shubman. The person who will play knows he is playing.”
He added, “I want to be conventional and also blend with out-of-box thinking. Want to have nice balance…We have to keep things simple and the team that plays better cricket will win it.”
