Rishabh Pant is the next MS Dhoni: Sam Billings

The Indian Premier League has always been a hotbed for grooming young talented players for the national side. With MS Dhoni’s recent struggles in T20 cricket, the hunt is on for the player who could replace him. England player Sam Billings believes that Rishabh Pant would be an ideal candidate.

Pant is an extremely dedicated player, as he has proven time and again. A day before the Delhi Daredevils’ first match, Pant had lost his father. But despite that, he returned after mourning and scored a half-century in his very first match. “He [Pant] is phenomenal, both as a batsman and a keeper, just looking at the way he has done in these first few games. He was standing up to the stumps, almost Dhoni-esque. There is no doubt in my mind that once MS Dhoni hangs his boots, Pant is the guy (to replace him). Big words I know, but you just see him and it is there,” said Billings.

Apart from Pant, Sanju Samson is also another player who has been impressive. Samson scored the first century of the IPL season against Rising Pune Supergiant. So far, Delhi sits 4th in the standings with 2 wins out of 5.