Pant or KL Rahul: Who should be India's first-choice wicketkeeper for the Champions Trophy?

You might as well ask which came first, the chicken or the egg – it feels impossible to answer at this point.

India had a simplified task of this during their last major 50-over assignment, the 2023 World Cup. Pant's long-term injury meant Rahul was the standout option, with Ishan Kishan a comfortable, and capable, second-choice. It's not quite as easy with Pant back in the mix.

Read more: What each side needs to answer as the Champions Trophy warm-ups begin

On numbers alone, there is pretty much no competition. Rahul blows Pant out of the water at No.s 4 & 5 – the likely spots that India's wicketkeeper will bat. He may strike at 20 points lower, but averages over 20 runs more per dismissal, a solid alternate to have in an already-aggressive batting lineup.

ODI batting record at No.4 & No.5 (as of February 6, 2025)

India did have to make a choice between the two when they travelled to Sri Lanka last August. Rahul played the first two matches of that series, and Pant the third. But that may not necessarily have been an indication of the pecking order, since Pant had played the T20 World Cup, and Rahul was not even part of the squad. Rest and/or match practice might have been the agenda.

Apart from batting, there's little to choose between the pair when it comes to wicketkeeping. Both have shown themselves to be capable in the one-day format, and the only concern could be over Pant's workload across a busy Test season thus far. He also turned out in one Ranji Trophy game for Delhi.

KL Rahul is the incumbent; will he remain so?

A firmer answer came from India captain Rohit Sharma in his pre-match press conference on Wednesday (February 5) ahead of the ODI series against England. Asked about the decision, he seemed to indicate a continuation with the incumbent in the form of Rahul: "Obviously, KL Rahul has been keeping wickets for us in in the ODI format for a number of years now.

"And he has done pretty well. If you look at the last 10-15 ODIs, he has done exactly what the team required him to do. Rishabh as well, he's there. We've got an option of playing either one of them.

"Both are quite capable of winning games on their own, so it's a good headache to have, whether to play KL or Rishabh but obviously looking at what we've done in the past, having that continuity is also very important for us. So that is where we stand as a team with KL and Rishabh."

From everything on the table so far, Rahul looks to be the obvious choice. Why then, could this be such a conundrum?

Two things: The left-right combination, and the promise of, well, more from Pant.

The latter is a bit more difficult to take into account. Before his car accident in 2022, Pant had been in excellent form in ODIs. In 12 innings spanning the best part of two years, there were four half-centuries (two vs England, one each vs South Africa and West Indies) and one century (vs England), all scored at strike rates in excess of 110. He averaged 44.6 in that time frame.

The question to be asked then, is whether he can continue that form, or even take it to the next level, over two years since that run with minimal 50-over cricket under his belt (T20s and Tests don't quite have the same rhythm to them). If the answer to that is yes, then there's a real case for him to displace Rahul.

Does India's left-right obsession give Pant the edge over Rahul?

The consideration of a left-right combination would not ordinarily be on par with everything else here. But ever since Gautam Gambhir took over as India's head coach, that has overridden almost anything else when it comes to batting orders in white-ball cricket.

In the first ODI against Sri Lanka, Washington Sundar was promoted to No.4, pushing Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul down one spot each. In the second it was Shivam Dube who batted there, and Axar Patel who replaced him once he was out for a four-ball duck. Iyer and Rahul ended up batting at No.6 & No.7 in that match. When Pant came in for the third game, he batted 4 with Riyan Parag ending up at No.7.

We don't know if India will persist with this shuffling of the batting order. Given that Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli are untouchable at this point in time, No.4 is the earliest they can introduce a left-hander into the game. And Pant is currently, undoubtedly, better-suited to that position than Axar Patel, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar or whoever else India have available.

It's a thankless call that awaits India, and whichever way they lean it will be both warranted (to whoever plays) and unwarranted (to whoever sits out). In a way, this is Schrödinger's selection – if India have a batting collapse with Pant in the team, the solidity of Rahul will be lamented. If they fall short of a par score with Rahul in the lineup, Pant's explosiveness will be missed.

But no one will know until the box is opened, whether the proverbial cat is dead or alive.

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