Published 16:03 IST, October 26th 2020

Rishabh Pant not to be preferred by Virat Kohli for Australia tour due to 'weight issues'?

Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant is likely to be excluded by BCCI and the team management from India's squad for the upcoming India vs Australia series.

SportFit
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Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will soon anunce India’s squ for ir high-profile tour to Australia. In recent development, it appears that Rishabh Pant is likely to be excluded from India’s squ due to “weight issues”. According to a report by Times of India, BCCI and Indian team manment is laying emphasis on fitness of players ahe of much-awaited India vs Australia 2020 series.

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Rishabh Pant’s fate hangs in balance for India vs Australia 2020 series

A source close to BCCI recently told aforementioned publication that Indian team fitness manment shared ir perspective on Rishabh Pant a few days ago. source furr said that Indian team trainer Nick Webb thinks cricketer is overweight. Apart from obvious issues, BCCI and Indian selectors will soon be taking a fitness report on Rishabh Pant and are likely to consult about cricketer’s selection with Indian captain Virat Kohli as well. selectors will also be speaking with Nick Webb before making ir final decision about Rishabh Pant.

Rishabh Pant was part of Indian touring party in Australia that lifted Border-Gavaskar Trophy back in 2018-19. He also struck a classy 159* in fourth Test, which helped Virat Kohli and co. to seal series in ir favour.

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India vs Australia 2020: Likely candidates for India’s wicketkeeping slot

Apart from “weight issues”, Rishabh Pant has also been struggling with bat in ongoing Dream11 Indian Premier League 2020 (IPL 2020) season. Meanwhile, or contemporary wicketkeeper-batsman like Punjab skipper KL Rahul and Rajasthan’s Sanju Samson have showcased better consistency in run scoring. Given ir recent form, two cricketers are likely to be considered for limited-overs segment of India vs Australia 2020 series.

Test specialist Wriddhiman Saha is likely to be selected for four-match Test series which will run from December 2020 to January 2021. In October 2019, Virat Kohli even maintained that Wriddhiman Saha is “world’s best wicketkeeper” at moment for Test cricket.

Rishabh Pant in Dream11 IPL 2020

So far in ongoing Dream11 IPL 2020 season, Rishabh Pant has played eight matches for Shreyas Iyer-led Delhi franchise. He has scored 217 runs in process at an aver of 31. Pant is yet to register a 50-plus score and his highest score of season remains his 17-ball 38 against Kolkata on October 3.