Rishabh Pant finally gave Lucknow Super Giants something to cheer about on Thursday night, remaining unbeaten on 32 off 10 balls as LSG edged Royal Challengers Bengaluru by nine runs via the DLS method in Lucknow in match 49 of IPL 2026. While Mitchell Marsh’s blistering 111 and Nicholas Pooran’s 38 powered LSG to 209 for 3, Pant’s late cameo provided the finishing touch in a much-needed win for a side whose IPL 2026 campaign has otherwise spiralled badly.Yet, even amid the relief of snapping a six-match winless streak, Pant’s season has been wobbly at best and in many ways akin to his career trajectory over the last few years – flashes of brilliance mixed with prolonged inconsistency.Pant arrived in the IPL in 2016 carrying the reputation of a fearless six-hitter destined to dominate T20 cricket. Back then, there were far more doubts about whether his aggressive style would survive the demands of Test cricket. A decade later, however, the script has flipped dramatically.Today, Pant is regarded as one of India’s greatest match-winners in Test cricket, producing unforgettable knocks overseas and redefining the role of a wicketkeeper-batter in the longest format. But in white-ball cricket, especially T20s, inconsistency has increasingly become a concern.
Rishabh Pant’s declining T20 numbers
His breakthrough IPL season came in 2018 when he dismantled bowling attacks for Delhi Capitals, scoring 684 runs in 14 innings at an average of 52.61 and a strike rate above 173, including a century and five fifties. It was the kind of season that convinced many that Indian cricket had found its next great T20 superstar.But despite occasional flashes over the years, Pant has never crossed the 500-run mark in an IPL season again. Ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction, Lucknow Super Giants bought him for a staggering Rs 27 crore, making him the most expensive player in IPL history.The struggles have become even more evident in IPL 2026, with LSG enduring a disastrous campaign. Although Thursday’s win kept their slim playoff hopes alive, Pant’s own form has mirrored the team’s decline for most of the season.In ten matches this season, Pant has scored 236 runs at an average of 29.50 and a strike rate of 139.64. For a batter once known for his explosive strokeplay, the numbers underline a sharp dip in impact. He has hit only 23 fours and nine sixes, while his lone half-century came in a scratchy, unbeaten 68 against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
How Rishabh Pant’s white-ball career lost momentum
Even in innings where Pant has hinted at rediscovering his touch, he has struggled to convert starts into match-winning knocks. During LSG’s daunting 255-run chase against Punjab Kings, Pant smashed four sixes, including two remarkable one-handed blows, before his innings stalled at a crucial stage and ended at 43 off 23 balls. Against Kolkata Knight Riders, he made 42 off 38 in a modest chase but failed to accelerate as LSG collapsed from 78 for 3 to 148 for 8 before losing in the Super Over.The dip in form is not entirely new. Last season, Pant scored 269 runs in 14 matches, with 118 of those coming in a dead rubber against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the final league game. Since the start of 2024, he has averaged just 24.89 at a strike rate of 131.02 across 22 IPL innings.This season alone, Pant has batted in three different positions for LSG – opener, No. 3 and No. 4 – reflecting the uncertainty around both his role and form.His struggles in franchise cricket have also coincided with a dip in India’s white-ball setup. In 76 T20Is, Pant has scored 1,209 runs at an average of 23.25 and a strike rate of just over 127, with only three half-centuries. His ODI numbers are better – 871 runs in 31 matches at an average of 33.50 – but he has not played white-ball cricket for India since the 2024 Sri Lanka tour.Since then, KL Rahul has strengthened his place in India’s ODI side, while Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson have moved ahead in the T20 pecking order. Samson, in particular, cemented his position after a sensational T20 World Cup campaign in which he scored 321 runs and won the Player of the Tournament award.
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