'I would still pick him' - Saba Karim backs Rishabh Pant to be India's first choice wicketkeeper

Saba Karim, Rishabh Pant, Sanju Samson (Image Source: Twitter)

Rishabh Pant has already proven his batting skills and it is a well-known fact that the southpaw can take the game away from the opponent team on his day. However, the Indian wicketkeeper is yet to play a blistering inning in the shortest format of the game this year. Saba Karim, the former India cricketer, backed the player and said that players like Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan lacked the X-factor that Pant has. 

During an interaction with India News, Karim said that Pant remains the first-choice wicketkeeper for India. However, contrary to his opinion, Samson, who is not a part of the 20-20 World Cup squad, played a fantastic knock of 86* that almost saw India win the game in the first ODI against South Africa on October 6, Thursday at Lucknow. 

“I would still pick Rishabh Pant over Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan. I don't see the X factor in these two that Rishabh Pant has. Samson is a wonderful stroke player and can retain his place in the team as a batter,” said Karim during an interaction with India News. 

Pant would be my first choice in both white ball and red ball: Karim

The former chief selector also backed Pant to retain his spot in both red-ball and white-ball cricket. Emphasizing Pant’s X-factor, Karim said that he deserves the go-ahead of Samson and Kishan. 

“Ishan Kishan hasn't made the most of his chances, which is why he has fallen down the pecking order. Having said that, Pant would be my first choice in both white-ball and red-ball cricket,” said the former selector further. 

Samson would look to bank on his recent form and would look to level the series in the second ODI to be played on Sunday at Ranchi. As for the first match, India, led by Shikhar Dhawan, fell short in the first ODI by 9 runs. However, the team would look to turn things around in Sunday’s encounter and level the series.