Parthiv Patel has a special advice for under-fire Rishabh Pant, read here

Veteran wicketkeeper-batsman Parthiv Patel has come out with advice for young keeper-batsman Rishabh Pant, saying that he needs to ignore criticism and focus on his game. Seen as a successor to Mahendra Singh Dhoni, the 22-year-old has been under the scanner for his failure to perform consistently in international cricket. In the recent series against Bangladesh and West Indies, Pant had an ordinary outing behind the wickets.

“Today’s youngsters have got that advantage of playing with the big players and sharing the dressing room with them. But when you are struggling for form, you get opinions from all quarters. It’s about keeping yourself away from opinions and focus on your game,” Patel said.

“If you play for India, there would be pressure. Every player has got the pressure of different situations. Your skills get honed in such pressure situations.

“In the T20 series (against WI) he did well. You see he’s having a fun time at the ground as well. He can become a good player when he comes out of such pressure situations,” he added.

On Pant’s wicket-keeping technique, the 34-year-old said: “Obviously when you play for India, you have something in you. He made his Test debut in a tough place like England where the ball swings a lot. He’s a young player. It’s about gaining confidence. It can change in a matter of one-two innings.”

“Opinions should not matter when you know that the team management and selectors back you. It’s about enjoying the moment and express yourself,” he said.

“It’s just because he’s doing well there’s so much talk about him. He has done well in the last series. He has got the talent and the team is providing him that confidence to do much better,” added Patel, a veteran of 25 Tests and 38 ODIs added.