Rishabh Pant over MS Dhoni: Former India batter picks all-time Asia XI, makes big statement on ex-India captain

Rishabh Pant over MS Dhoni: Former India batter picks all-time Asia XI, makes big statement on ex-India captain originally appeared on Cricket News. Add Cricket News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Wasim Jaffer picked Rishabh Pant over MS Dhoni in his all-time Asian Test XI.
• He named Imran Khan as captain and Sachin Tendulkar as vice-captain of the team.
• Pant has now broken Dhoni's record for most away Test runs by an Indian wicketkeeper.

Rishabh Pant over MS Dhoni: Wasim Jaffer makes a bold call in his all-time Asian Test XI

Wasim Jaffer has never been someone who shies away from sharing his opinion, and his latest one is turning heads.

The former India opener, speaking on his YouTube channel during the ongoing India versus Sri Lanka Test series, which India currently lead 1-0, was asked to name a captain and vice-captain for a hypothetical all-time Asian Test XI.

Before getting to the headline moment, Jaffer's other picks are worth noting. He went with Imran Khan, Pakistan's legendary captain, match-winner, and one of the finest all-rounders the game has produced, as the skipper of his Asian XI.

For vice-captain, he settled on Sachin Tendulkar, which hardly needs defending. Tendulkar's Test record speaks across generations. Jaffer laid it out simply, saying Imran would lead the side and Sachin would be the ideal deputy. 

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Then came the moment that nobody saw coming. When the conversation moved to wicketkeepers, Jaffer was blunt. He said he doesn't think MS Dhoni would even find a place in the team, and that Rishabh Pant is the man he'd pick instead.

"Imran Khan would be the captain. My vice-captain would be Sachin. I don't think MS Dhoni will even make it to the team. For me, Rishabh Pant would get into the team. Sachin would be an ideal vice-captain," he said.

Dhoni's Test numbers, which are 4876 runs across 90 matches at an average of 38.09, including six hundreds and 33 half-centuries, are nothing to dismiss. But Jaffer seems to be making the argument on pure batting quality in the longest format, and on that measure, Pant's case has been growing stronger with every series.

Pant's performances during this Sri Lanka tour couldn't have come at a better time for this debate. He made 66 off 69 balls in the second innings of the first Test, then walked back out to bat in the first innings of the second Test despite injuring his wrist on day one, and still made 63 off 89 balls.

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(Getty)

Pant breaks Dhoni's away Test record in Sri Lanka

The numbers have now crossed another threshold. After his innings in the second Test, Pant went past Dhoni's record for the most runs scored in away Tests by an Indian wicketkeeper.

In just 36 matches, compared to Dhoni's 48, Pant now has 2,534 runs away from home, with six hundreds and eleven fifties (one of those Tests being the neutral WTC 2021 final in England).

He's become the first Indian wicketkeeper ever to cross the 2,500-run mark in away conditions. Dhoni's tally of 2,496 from 48 away games, at an average of 32.48, has been overtaken with roughly a third fewer matches played.

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Jaffer's pick reflects a real debate that Test cricket deserves

Dhoni was a transformational cricketer in every sense. His captaincy record alone would get him into most all-time XIs. But when you strip that away and focus purely on batting in Test conditions, particularly away from home, the conversation becomes more nuanced.

Dhoni's away average of 32.48 across 48 matches is decent, but not exceptional for a lower-middle-order bat expected to anchor innings.

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Pant, meanwhile, is doing things in Test cricket that very few wicketkeeper-batters have done. He wins matches. He scores runs under pressure in foreign conditions. He bats in the top six in terms of impact even when coming in at seven. And he's only 27.

Jaffer's argument isn't really about disrespecting Dhoni; it's about recognising that Pant, as a Test batter, may already be operating at a higher level than Dhoni ever did in whites. That's not a slight on a great career. The record books, quietly, are starting to agree.

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