Dinesh Karthik on Rishabh Pant being termed India’s greatest keeper-batter: ‘Don’t discount Dhoni’s credentials’

Former India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik believes Rishabh Pant being termed as the greatest wicketkeeper-batter for India in Test cricket is a disservice to the legacy of former India captain MS Dhoni.

“It’s very unacceptable to say that he’s played 34 Tests and he’s already India’s greatest wicketkeeper batter. Let’s take time, let’s not jump to conclusions but definitely he’s on course for sure and he will finish as India’s greatest ever wicketkeeper,” Karthik told Cricbuzz.

“Don’t discount Dhoni’s credentials as a wicketkeeper as well. He not only kept brilliantly, batted and scored runs when it mattered very, very well for India but also he led India to a World Test Championship mace which is becoming number 1. So you got to give all that weightage as well when you speak about a player all round,” he added.

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India’s third highest-run scorer in Tests since 2020 – only behind Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, Pant is also the only Indian keeper-batter to have scored a Test hundred in Australia, England and South Africa.

Batter Matches Runs Average 100s/50s MS Dhoni 90 4876 38.1 6/33 Rishabh Pant 34 2419 44.8 6/11

Marking his comeback to the longest format against Bangladesh in first Test after almost two years, Pant scored his sixth hundred to help India claim a 280-run comprehensive win.

Speaking of the comparisons with the former India captain, Pant insisted that he was only carving his own path.

“This is CSK’s home ground. Mahi bhai has played a lot of cricket here. But, for me, like I have said before, I want to be myself. I don’t focus on what’s being said or what’s happening around me. I keep things simple and focus on giving my best. The atmosphere here was amazing, and I really enjoyed it,” Pant told JioCinema.

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