'It's as if he has taken a vow to step out very first ball' - Salman Butt calls out Rishabh Pant for irresponsible shot selection

Rishabh Pant was topsy-turvy during India's recent tour to the rainbow nation. Although he played some outstanding knocks in a few games, he also went on to irresponsibly throw his wicket, while playing rash shots early on in his innings, on a few occasions.

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Thus, the keeper-batter's batting approach was questioned by a few cricket pundits and experts. As a matter of fact, even in the third ODI in Cape Town, he came charging down the wicket in just his first ball, only to be dismissed for a golden duck. Hence, Salman Butt went on to criticize his shot selection as well.

While speaking on his YouTube channel, the former Pakistan player spoke about what Pant needs to do in order to get better. He cited an example of the third one-dayer, and stated that the Delhi player could have taken his time to settle. However, he did mention the fact that the 24-year-old is a good stroke player.

Pant's form is good currently : Salman Butt

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"Take Rishabh Pant's example; the partnership (for the last wicket) was set and he should have taken his time because the scoring rate was also healthy. Even with a run-a-ball 20 or 25, he could have taken India to a win very easily. He is s such a good stroke player who is capable of achieving any target. It's as if he has taken a vow to step out very first ball. Not sure if someone tells him to do so before he walks out to bat or he fantasizes about doing something extraordinary on the very first ball. It is not sensible. His form is good currently and whenever he stays, he scores big. So, he should utilize it," said Salman Butt.

The 37-year-old further spoke about India's performance in the ODI series. He felt that India's selection wasn't great. Moreover, Butt also drew light on how none of the Asian batters converted their half-centuries into centuries.

"If we go with pure cricketing reasons, then the selection wasn't great as far as the bowling line-up is concerned. It lacked pace. In the batting department, no one was able to convert their 50s and 60s into a century. If you look at the difference between India and South Africa in these matches, you'd notice that their (SA's) batters would go on to play a big innings after getting set," he said.

"On the other hand, whenever an Indian batter got set, he'd get out after scoring a 50-60. So, it was obvious that when they lost wickets in a cluster, the guy coming in would be under a lot of pressure," he added.