"Has the think tank drained out?" - Former India batter slams LSG's decision to demote Rishabh Pant in the batting order against DC in IPL 2025 

Former India cricketer Krishnamachari Srikkanth was left baffled by the Lucknow Super Giants' (LSG) call to send Rishabh Pant out to bat at No.7 in the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) contest against the Delhi Capitals (DC). The LSG captain only faced two deliveries towards the end of the innings, and was bowled by Mukesh Kumar for a duck at the Ekana Stadium on Tuesday, April 22.

Rishabh Pant has come out to bat at No.4 in all of LSG's matches in IPL 2025 so far, except one. However, upon the fall of the second wicket in the 12th over, it was Abdul Samad who came into bat. Even after the double strike in the 14th over, Rishabh Pant did not come out to bat, as David Miller and Ayush Badoni came in ahead of him.

Srikkanth failed to understand the reasoning behind Pant's demotion in the batting order against DC.

"Has the think tank drained out in the lsg dressing room! Absolute nonsense in not having a guy like pant bat more deliveries! The match was lost before he came into bat! Well played DC and brillaint bowling by Mukesh!" Srikkanth posted on X after LSG's stint with the bat.

Rishabh Pant last played at No.7 during the IPL 2016 encounter against the Kings XI Punjab (now renamed as Punjab Kings). On that occasion, he faced only three deliveries, scoring four runs off them to remain unbeaten. He has also batted at No.8 in the competition before, in the same season, against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

Rishabh Pant has struggled for runs in the middle order in IPL 2025

The southpaw has not fared well at No.4 in the ongoing season, and has been trapped by spinners up front. There were calls for him to open the innings, but the pairing of Mitchell Marsh and Aiden Markram has worked well for the team so far. The second-best option arguably comes in the form of No.3, but it has been sealed beyond limit by the in-form Nicholas Pooran.

He availed the opportunity to open once in Mitchell Marsh's absence against the Gujarat Titans (GT). But, he scored only 21 runs off 18 deliveries, before being dismissed by Prasidh Krishna.

The ploy to demote Rishabh Pant did not necessarily pay off for LSG as both Abdul Samad and David Miller struggled with the bat. The former scored two runs off eight balls, while the latter recorded an unbeaten 15-ball 14. The sluggish batting display after a prolific 87-run opening stand meant that LSG only finished with 159-6 after 20 overs.