Leg and Off: Is Rishabh Pant feeling the pressure of the ₹27 crore price tag?

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper Rishabh Pant has dominated the headlines in the first two weeks of IPL 2025. Unfortunately, very little has been written about his batting, wicketkeeping or captaincy performances.

Instead, his price tag of ₹27 crore at the IPL 2025 mega auction, which made him the most expensive player in league history, has been the talking point, considering his indifferent start to the season. Pant has scored just 17 runs in three matches at a dismal average of 5.66 and a strike rate of 65.38.

Furthermore, it hasn't helped matters that his captaincy moves have been questionable on several occasions already, with LSG struggling at the sixth spot on the points table, winning only one out of their first three matches.

As is often the case with the IPL and huge price tags, fans and experts have begun connecting Pant's sorry performances thus far with the expectations that come from being the most expensive signing in history.

Are the two connected or is Pant's performance more a poor phase exclusive of the price tag and more to do with other on-field factors? Let us deep-dive into this and figure out if Pant is feeling the pressure of the ₹27 crore price tag.

---

A closer look at Risbhabh Pant's first three IPL 2025 matches

Before psychoanalyzing Rishabh Pant and the possible weight of the price tag playing a role in his sub-par season thus far, we must break down his performances in each of the first three games.

While it is impossible to definitively confirm why a player is going through a torrid stretch, something like price tag pressure normally leads to indecisiveness. Has Pant been a victim of the same in any of his three batting stints?

In LSG's season opener against the Delhi Capitals (DC), the southpaw walked in to bat with the side in a dominant 133 for 2 in the 12th over. However, brilliant bowling from Pant's India teammate Kuldeep Yadav saw the LSG skipper struggle to open his account.

It led to Pant playing a tame lofted shot off Kuldeep, resulting in his downfall for a six-ball duck. Considering the need to up the ante in that situation, it is hard to attach the 'price tag' reason for his poor shot selection and dismissal in that particular instance.

Moving on to LSG's second outing against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH), Pant walked in to bat with his side coasting towards a crushing victory. Chasing 191, LSG were 120 for 2 in 8.4 overs and the skipper subsequently smashed a maximum in his 15-ball stay.

He was dismissed for a run-a-ball 15 off a freakish full-toss that was close to being a no-ball. Thus, one can figure out that the pressure of the price tag played no part in Pant's low score in the SRH outing.

Finally, looking into last night's encounter against the Punjab Kings (PBKS), Pant's dismissal was a potential cause of concern. The 27-year-old came into bat with his side in trouble at 32 for 2 in the fourth over.

Yet, Pant looked tentative from the word go, almost as if he was indecisive whether to stay for the long haul or exploit the powerplay with aggression. He eventually fell tamely off his fifth delivery to a drag down from Glenn Maxwell.

Pant gifted a catch to short fine-leg instead of going all-out for a maximum - a clear sign of indecision.

Role of captaincy in the 'Price Tag' equation

It is important to remember the role other responsibilities play in a cricketer's performance in his primary skill. While LSG are banking on Pant's swashbuckling batting, his captaincy certainly played a part in him fetching the big bucks at the auction.

A lot of blame was laid at Pant's feet when LSG lost their tournament opener from a winnable position against DC. Defending 210, LSG had DC reeling at 65 for 5 before a series of tactical errors cost them the win.

Pant overused the spinners and never brought back Shardul Thakur, who had picked up two wickets in his opening spell, at the death. It meant DC's Ashutosh Sharma had a field day smashing the spinners and making the critics look at Pant's captaincy.

It doesn't help that Pant boasts a mediocre IPL captaincy record with 24 wins and 21 losses in 45 outings. Beyond the individual performances, it is team success or failure that helps a big-money signing prosper or shrink during a season.

In Pant's case, the massive price tag may be playing a hindering role more in his captaincy, which in turn might slowly be eating away at his batting. While the wicketkeeper-batter has produced with the bat in his previous stints as captain with DC, thepPrice tag then was never this earth-shattering and thereby pressure-inducing.

Price tag pressure or poor phase?

Rishabh Pant could not have endured a worse start to his IPL 2025 campaign [Credit: Getty]

There is a reason almost all players execute their skills to perfection at net sessions. The words 'expectations', 'circumstances', and 'consequences' are completely taken out of the equation, relieving the mind of external baggage.

Yet, not everyone shrinks under the 'price tag' spotlight, as evidenced by Shreyas Iyer's performance in a similar role to Pant's with the Punjab Kings (PBKS). Iyer was the second most expensive signing in IPL history at ₹26.75 crore in the 2025 auction.

However, in his case, the massive signing seems to have ignited him, with the side winning their first two matches under his leadership. Furthermore, Iyer has looked as good as ever with the bat, with scores of 97* and 52* in the two wins.

A similar case to Pant thus far this season is Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) batter Venkatesh Iyer. Signed for a mammoth ₹23.75 crore, the southpaw has seemingly wilted under the spotlight with scores of 3 and 6 in his two innings.

Coming back to Pant's case, however, his success over the years has been reliant on daring to perform things others wouldn't on the cricketing field. A free-spirited person by nature, the gloveman has been at the center of criticism for every move he makes while batting.

Thus, based on that and the previously analyzed three batting stints in IPL 2025, it is hard to say Pant is feeling the heat of the ₹27 crore. Yet, if anything at all, the pressure of the price tag may be felt by him during LSG's fielding innings as captain, especially with the side's poor start at 1-2 in three matches.