‘Want Rishabh Pant to be the best Test player he’s always been’: Ajit Agarkar after vice-captaincy goes to KL Rahul

MUMBAI: This is perhaps the toughest phase of Rishabh Pant’s international career. On Tuesday, his recent setbacks acquired an official colour. From being removed from the Test vice-captaincy to giving way to the in-form Ishan Kishan in ODIs, little seems to be going right for the 28-year-old Pant.

Once viewed as a future India captain and the architect of several famous Test victories overseas, the left-hander has endured another underwhelming IPL season for Lucknow Super Giants, scoring just 251 runs in 12 matches at 27.88, with only one fifty.




Under his captaincy, LSG have also slumped to the bottom of the IPL table.

Meanwhile, Pant’s competitors — Sanju Samson and Kishan — have surged ahead after starring in India’s triumphant 2026 T20 World Cup campaign and carrying that form into the IPL for their franchises.

Defending the decision to remove Pant as vice-captain, chief selector Ajit Agarkar insisted the move was aimed at helping Pant focus fully on his batting. “Rishabh is an incredible Test player. We want him to become the best Test player that he has always been,” Agarkar said during a virtual press conference on Tuesday. “I don’t think there is any concern with his place in the Test team. He remains one of our main batters. He had a really good tour of England before he got injured.

“At the moment, in One-Day cricket, we have gone with two different options. But in Test cricket, he remains one of our key players,” he added. The selectors clearly see Rahul as the safer deputy to Shubman Gill, particularly given his leadership experience and strong overseas record. “KL has captained India in Tests before. We felt he was the best option at this point from a leadership and experience perspective,” Agarkar said.

Nabi ignored, Brar gets surprise call-up

The selection meeting also produced a few eyebrow-raising decisions in the pace department. Despite topping the wicket charts in the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season with 60 wickets in 10 matches at an astonishing average of 12.56, Jammu & Kashmir seamer Auqib Nabi was overlooked. Instead, the selectors backed Punjab and Gujarat Titans pacer Gurnoor Brar for both the Test and ODI squads, while Lucknow Super Giants pacer Prince Yadav earned a maiden ODI call-up.

The decision effectively shuts the door, at least temporarily, on Mohammed Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Agarkar admitted Nabi’s performances were discussed. “Nabi is someone who has done really well over the last couple of seasons. There was certainly a discussion around him,” Agarkar said. “But in India, you don’t necessarily pick too many seamers in a Test squad. He was close, but we went with the options we have picked.”

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