On the day when Rizwan wins an ICC award, Pant drops 2 catches. The gal of Indian fans to say he is better than Rizwan.......
You cannot compare directly because both players are not competing for the same spot in the same team.
Rizwan is an excellent player and he has always been an excellent player. It was obvious for a very long time but the issue is that Pakistani fans know nothing about cricket and the management persisted with Sarfraz longer than they should have.
By 2017-18, it was obvious that Rizwan was a better WK batsman than Sarfraz, but Sarfraz fluked the CT and prolonged his career.
Sarfraz was rested against Australia in the ODI series in UAE 2 months before the 2019 World Cup and Rizwan, who replaced him, scored 2 hundreds. Everyone including Sarfraz knew that Rizwan was far better.
As a result of Sarfraz’s insecurity, Rizwan was dropped from the team immediately and credit goes to Misbah for kicking him out after the Sri Lanka series in 2019 and then promoting Rizwan as an opener in T20Is.
When Rizwan played in the middle-order, Pakistani fans thought he was a nothing player. If Pakistan had a world class, settled top 3 like India, Rizwan would have never had the chance to open and he would not be considered a top player.
Similarly, if Pant was in Pakistan, he would most likely get a chance as an explosive opener and he might have been one of the most devastating openers in the world today.
The point is that players have different career paths and trajectories based on circumstances. Rizwan winning this award doesn’t prove that he is better or worse than Pant. They are not competing for the same spot and in the same team.
Both players are very different from each other. Rizwan is better for a weak team like Pakistan because he is more steady, safe and takes less risks. Pant on the other hand is a flamboyant, hugely impactful player that carries an aura and a fear-factor that few players in the world can match.
He is basically the Asian version of Gilchrist. Captains and bowlers just hate it when Pant is at the crease because he can turn things around on its head by pulling off a spectacular innings out of nowhere.
Like Sehwag, he has a big psychological impact on the opposition. Australia were delaying declaring in Perth because they were scared of him and he still mauled them.
Rizwan is not capable of the type of innings that Pant can play. The innings that Pant played in Australia and South Africa, Rizwan would never replicate that in those situations and circumstances.
However, Rizwan is a more stable player and over the course of let’s say 10 innings, he will probably outscore Pant, although his less would carry less impact value.
In terms of keeping, there is no comparison right now but people underrate Pant a lot. He is inconsistent at the moment and has technical flaws, but Rizwan at 24 wasn’t a much better keeper than Pant.
Outrageously talented players like Pant can be good at anything because they have the natural ability to adapt. With more experience and hard work, there is no doubt that he can be a top keeper.
