Can Rishabh Pant Bounce Back In England Tests After Horror IPL 2025?

Whether anyone admits it or not, the tag of being the most expensive player in Indian Premier League (IPL) history can weigh any player down. Mitchell Starc was in the same league last year when Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) shelled out a then-record 24.75 crore on him, but the Australian pacer proved that it was money well spent as he starred in the playoffs and final to lead his side to the title.

However, the same cannot be said about Rishabh Pant, on whom Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) spent INR 27 crore. KL Rahul's departure left a huge hole in the team, and Pant was expected to fill it, and more. His team are not just out of contention for a place in the playoffs, he is on course to registering his worst IPL season yet.

His 135 runs at 12.27 at a run-a-ball pace is not what you expect from your captain and marquee signing, but the larger picture is: How much of this baggage will affect Pant in the Test series against England, a country where his numbers have been middling to say the least?

Regardless of the format, watching Pant bat is nothing short of a rollercoaster ride. In IPL 2025, LSG's top three - comprising of Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram and Nicholas Pooran -  clicked quite well. As a result, No. 4 was looking to be Pant's best position. He scored 107 in 109 balls there this season.

Moreover, Pant's strike rate of 96.4 is the worst for any batter batting at No. 4 below (MIN: 100 runs).

Even leading up to the tournament, Pant's performance in Australia was underwhelming. His shots on a few occasions were unnecessarily outrageous and often bore the brunt of the critics. However, it was this version of Pant that the world fell in love with not too long ago. His out-of-the-box shots and playing counter-attacking cricket have helped India win many Tests. Having played 43 Tests, his opponents are now well-versed with the sort of cricket the southpaw plays. Their bowling and fielding plans get tweaked accordingly. 

Hence, the onus is now on Pant to evolve. Even in the ongoing IPL season, bowlers have bowled over 55% of their deliveries in the 6m or below lengths and have walked away with six scalps. Even the spinners have hit those lengths well and have been rewarded. Out of his 11 dismissals, only ONE would have gone on to hit the stumps, and more often than not, has been dismissed chasing a wide one, misusing a short one to the fielder.

In fact, only 21% of the total balls Pant has faced in the IPL so far would have gone on to hit the stumps, further proving that the bowlers have done their homework and not allowed anything in his arc. The result: They have set a benchmark of how to contain Pant. 

If you look past his batting, LSG have been a touch unlucky with their injuries, especially in their bowling department. Their retained bowlers like Mohsin Khan were ruled out of the season, while Mayank Yadav played just a couple of matches. In fact, Akash Deep, who LSG snapped up for INR 8 crore at the auction too, has been unavailable for the majority of the season. 

"It could have been one of our best seasons, but coming into the tournament, we had a lot of gaps, injuries and as a team we decided to not talk about that, but it became difficult to fill those gaps for us," Pant said after loss to Punjab Kings (PBKS) on May 19 (Monday).

Moving on from the IPL, what will be Pant be both physically and emotionally? While IPL is certainly draining for any player, Test cricket is going to be 10 times more draining. Especially, if it's a five-Test series in England - a country where India have not had consistent success.

He had a poor putting on the 2021 tour (excluding the rescheduled Test), where he struck just one fifty in seven innings. Since his return to Tests in 2024, Pant has predominantly played at No. 5 and has slammed 580 runs at 38.66, but what's more noteworthy outside his century and three fifties is that he gets his runs at a strike rate of 71.34. 

Will this disappointing IPL in any way play a role in him moving away from it? Also, there's little doubt that Pant will have to shoulder more responsibilities with the bat following the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Will he be able to do that? Will the team management consider promoting Pant to No. 4 and elevating him to a leadership position?

For India to win in England, there's little doubt that Pant needs to have a top series. It's the start of a new World Test Championship (WTC) cycle. Pant will also look for a fresh start as India usher in a new era in whites.