“He clearly looks frustrated” - Former India cricketer’s huge statement on Rishabh Pant’s batting position in LSG vs DC IPL 2025 match

Former India cricketer Anil Kumble remarked that Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain Rishabh Pant reluctantly batted at No.7 against the Delhi Capitals (DC) based on his body language in the dug-out. The left-handed batter was seen having an animated discussion with mentor Zaheer Khan, before being dismissed for a two-ball duck in the last over of the innings at the Ekana Stadium on Tuesday, April 22.

Rishabh Pant has largely been LSG's No.4 batter in the tournament so far, with an in-form overseas top three scoring the bulk of runs. However, Abdul Samad, usually tasked with finishing the innings, was sent at No.4 against DC. The skipper continued to stay out of the proceedings as Ayush Badoni and David Miller were sent ahead of him as the wickets fell.

By the time the southpaw came out to bat, the innings was nearing its end. DC pacer Mukesh Kumar castled him in the final ball after a failed attempt at a reverse scoop. LSG finished with a well below-par total of 159-6 after being put into bat by Axar Patel.

Anil Kumble questioned whose decision it was to demote Rishabh Pant in the batting order.

"If you want to play freely, without any pressure, you should come a little late to the crease, but this is way too late. Looking at how frustrated Rishabh Pant is looking out there, you can see something wrong has happened. Maybe he wanted to go out early. Was it his decision? Was it Justin Langer or Zaheer Khan's? Because he clearly looks frustrated," Kumble said on Star Sports.

Rishabh Pant has not batted as low as No.7 in the IPL since his maiden campaign in 2016. The LSG skipper is under some serious pressure amid a lack of runs in IPL 2025 following a record move during the mega auction.

"Idea was to capitalize on a wicket like that" - Rishabh Pant on coming out to bat at No.7 during LSG vs DC IPL 2025 match

DC chased down the target with relative ease to seal an eight-wicket win. Fifties from Abishek Porel and KL Rahul meant that LSG struggled to have a say in the contest, with sloppy bowling and fielding not helping their cause.

After DC scaled the total with more than two overs to spare, LSG captain Rishabh Pant was quizzed about the surprising move to demote himself in the batting order.

"Idea was to capitalize on wicket like that, after that Miller came in and we were stuck too, we need to figure these things, try to find best combination going forward. We haven't thought about as of now, we need to regroup, just got to play the next game fresh." Pant told the broadcasters after the match.

LSG have struggled for consistency ever since winning three in a row during the early stages of the season. They are now involved in a mid-table log jam, and will face the Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday, April 27.