Pant's IPL 2026 misery: 312 runs, last-place LSG, captaincy surrendered
Test cricket his only refuge with 3,476 runs at 42.91 in 49 matches speaks for itself
Afghanistan Test offers the perfect reset, whites over franchise cricket, five days over four hours
India Vs Afghanistan, One-Off Test: Rishabh Pant's Red-Ball Refuge After IPL 2026 Nightmare
Rishabh Pant escapes IPL 2026 misery, 312 runs, last-place LSG, captaincy gone and finds solace in Test cricket against Afghanistan at Mullanpur
Summary
There is a version of Rishabh Pant that the world loves, gloves on, stumps disturbed, some audacious ramp over third man that no coaching manual would ever sanction. That Pant has been missing for two Indian Premier League (IPL) seasons now, buried somewhere under the weight of captaincy, expectation, and a INR 27 crore price tag that followed him everywhere like a neon sign.
As the dust settles on another forgettable IPL campaign, Rishabh Pant arrives at Mullanpur on June 6 not just as India's wicketkeeper, but as a man desperately in need of a format that has always been kind to him.
Test cricket suits his chaotic genius in ways T20 simply doesn't anymore. In 49 Tests, he has accumulated 3,476 runs at an average of 42.91, with eight centuries to his name, numbers that tell the story of a man who, when given five days, tends to leave a mark. The one-off Test against Afghanistan offers him exactly that sanctuary, a chance to shed the noise of franchise cricket and rediscover himself in whites.
Also Check: India Vs Afghanistan Preview, One-Off Test
The IPL Nightmare: Numbers That Tell a Brutal Story
The numbers from the last two IPL seasons make for grim reading. Pant scored only 269 runs at a strike rate of 133.16 in IPL 2025, and followed it up with just 312 runs at a strike rate of 138.05 in IPL 2026, deeply underwhelming returns for the most expensive player in the tournament's history.
LSG had acquired him for a record-breaking INR 27 crore ahead of the 2025 season. The captaincy compounded matters further. Under his leadership, LSG won just 10 and lost 18 matches across the two seasons, finishing seventh in IPL 2025 and dead last, tenth, in IPL 2026.
The end, when it came, was inevitable. Pant stepped down as LSG captain following the conclusion of IPL 2026, with coach Tom Moody acknowledging the franchise needed a full review before deciding on his future at the club.
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For now, though, the franchise chaos can wait. Pant has a Test match to play, and history suggests that is precisely where he belongs.
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