The India men's side has received a huge positive update on Tuesday (October 21). Wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant has recovered fully from the toe injury that forced him to exit the England tour at the fag end of the series. He had also suffered a finger injury in the same series although that wasn't as damaging as the foot injury.
The last few months have been a rehab phase for Pant who is now fully fit and has been named as India A captain for the two four-day matches against South Africa A. The squads named are different for each of the two games with the second match squad effectively consisting of India's regular players. However, Pant will be the captain for the India A fixtures with the South Africa series around the corner.
South Africa's tour of India is an all-format series with two Tests, three ODIs and five T20Is. The tour begins with the Test series with the first match at Kolkata followed by Guwahati. Pant's fitness will be evaluated across the course of the two India A games with the medical team expected to take it one game at a time.
Given that Pant will also have to keep wickets, it remains to be seen how much recovery has been done physically and mentally. As things stand, the 28-year-old is expected to feature in the first Test at Eden Gardens. With Dhruv Jurel doing well as the keeper-batter, there could be an option of playing Pant as a pure batter for the Kolkata Test if the management wants to ease him back steadily.
The immediate priority for the Indian team, however, is the T20I format with the World Cup barely four months away. However, Pant hasn't been part of India's plans in the shortest plans in recent times. His last T20I was in August 2024 and currently, Sanju Samson and Jitesh Sharma are higher in the pecking order than Pant in this format.
In Tests and ODIs, Pant continues to be one of India's key batters and his return will be a welcome relief for Shubman Gill who is still finding his feet as India's captain in these formats. Pant will be named Gill's deputy whenever he returns to the national side and at the moment, the South African Tests seem to be the timeline of return for the swashbuckling batter.
