The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) revealed that the injured Rishabh Pant resumed batting and keeping in nets at National Cricket Academy on July 21. An announcement triggered Indian fans who are eagerly waiting for the wicketkeeper's return to cricket but the veteran Indian pacer Ishant Sharma believes that Pant has a long way to go to return to cricket and added that the batter might miss the next edition of Indian Premier League as well.
Rishabh suffered a horrific car accident on the eve of the new year but is going through a positive recovery at NCA. He attended Delhi Capitals' few games during IPL 2023 and was spotted walking without clutches at NCA. He has just resumed batting and keeping in the nets this week but is unlikely to start full training anytime soon.
Ishant, who featured in eight IPL games for the Capitals this year, pointed out the seriousness of Rishabh's injuries and said the Delhi captain might miss the next season of IPL as well.
“I feel we might not see Rishabh Pant in the next IPL as well because it is not a small injury," Ishant Sharma told Jiocinemas on Saturday. "It was a very serious accident. He has just started batting and wicketkeeping and to run and turn after that, there are a lot of things, which is not easy for a wicketkeeper and a batter."
Ishant also shared that Rishabh will not be fit enough for the ICC ODI World Cup 2023 in India. “The good thing is that he didn’t have a second surgery. If he had undergone a second surgery, he would have been out for even longer. He has had one surgery now but I don’t think he will be fit for the World Cup for sure. Hopefully, if he gets fit for the IPL, it will be great," Sharma added.
