Former South Africa cricketer Shaun Pollock believes that Rishabh Pant's comments after Lucknow Super Giants' Super Over loss to Kolkata Knight Riders may have indirectly placed blame on the team management. Following LSG's defeat to KKR in the Super Over, Pant remarked that having too many opinions during the game made decision-making difficult.
The match went into a Super Over after Mohammed Shami struck a six off the final ball of the innings. However, Sunil Narine bowled a tight Super Over for KKR, securing victory for his team.
Two decisions by LSG captain Rishabh Pant came under heavy scrutiny: giving Digvesh Rathi the final over, where Rinku Singh smashed four consecutive sixes, and sending Nicholas Pooran in for the Super Over.
After the match, Pant said, "Too many minds don't make it easy on the ground."
Pollock stated that such a statement from the captain was not ideal because it sounded like he was pointing fingers at the management group. "It isn't really good that it is coming from the captain because he is basically saying there are too many people giving me information and he is kind of under the bus-ing the management group that they have got," Pollock said on Cricbuzz.
He also noted that it is difficult to fully judge the situation since outsiders do not know how decisions are made inside the LSG dressing room. "Maybe we don't know how it works; that is the problem. You don't know who has the final call, you don't know who sits with him and gives him the understanding of what they feel, or who has the discussions with him," Pollock added.
However, Pant also spoke about the need for the entire team to take responsibility after the defeat. At the post-match presentation, he said the team needed a short break to reset and handle pressure better. "I think we definitely need a break. I think we're gonna refresh. There is always pressure, and it's gonna be a pressure game always, but at the same time, we have to look for answers inside, not outside. And just keep it simple. We need to take accountability - every guy. Like, it can't be about one or two guys. It has to be about the whole unit, and a lot of people will take accountability for that for sure," Pant stated.
