Will Take Pant 15 Years To Match Dhoni's Achievements, Reckons Ganguly

Ganguly has backed the youngster and said that Pant should learn from all the criticism and find a way forward

As team India gears up for yet another limited-overs series, the focus has once again shifted to young wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant who is yet to find the purple patch. The Delhi lad has been under immense pressure in recent times after he failed to perform to potential. However, former India skipper and current BCCI President, Sourav Ganguly has backed the youngster and said that Pant should learn from all the criticism, including the chants of ‘Dhoni, Dhoni’ and find a way forward. “It's good for him (Pant). He should get used to it. Let him hear it and let him find a way to succeed. He will be under pressure and let him go through it and figure out on his own,” Ganguly said at an event. The BCCI chief also said that BCCI and Indian cricket must be thankful to Dhoni for his contribution and went on to add that it will take Pant 15 years to achieve what Dhoni achieved for the country. “The BCCI can't be thankful enough to MS for what he has done for Indian cricket. We will leave it at that. We are speaking to Virat, the selectors, that's what it is. We will address (Dhoni future) as and when it comes. “Every day, you don't get MS Dhoni. It will take Pant 15 years to achieve what MS has achieved,” he said. Earlier, skipper Virat Kohli also backed Pant and said that he has the confidence of the team management. “We certainly believe in Rishabh's ability. As you say, it's (also) the player's responsibility to do well, but our responsibility is to give him space, to support him. He should get support and it is disrespectful if you don't get it,” Kohli said during the pre-match conference. “As Rohit (Sharma) said recently, he needs to be left alone, he is a match-winner. Once he comes good, you will see a very different version of him. He can't be isolated to such an extent that he doesn't do well. We are here to do things for him,” he added.