Since the start of 2023, three wicketkeeper-batters have featured for India across 26 T20Is. Ishan Kishan has scored 207 runs in 11 T20Is, averaging 18.81 at a strike rate of 112.5. Jitesh Sharma has 100 runs in nine T20Is (average 14.28, strike rate 147.05). Sanju Samson has 54 runs in six matches at a strike rate of 145.94 while averaging 18.

These aren’t compelling numbers. But even if one of them had made more of an impression in the opportunities available, they would have always known that the equation can change once Rishabh Pant returned to the fold.

And it has. Pant, 26, averages just 22.43 with 987 runs in 66 T20Is (strike rate 126.37) – not on par with his impact in Test cricket – but he has so much going for him on his good days that middling returns can be excused in his case.

When Pant made his long-awaited comeback to competitive action on March 23, post a 14-month layoff that entailed two knee reconstruction surgeries among other complexities, the question floating around was this: can he return to being the audacious middle-order batter who won admirers with his fearless approach while also bearing the workload of keeping wickets?

Particularly after his unbeaten 88 off 43 balls against Gujarat Titans at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Wednesday, the answer is a resounding yes. For Delhi Capitals, Pant has batted and donned the wicketkeeping gloves in every game, contrary to the view a few months ago — offered by Delhi Capitals co-owner Parth Jindal himself — that he may be featuring predominantly as an impact sub this season. And his stats are creditable — 342 runs in nine matches including three fifties. He is averaging 48.85 and striking at 161.32. Behind the stumps, he has claimed 10 catches and effected three stumpings. The one-handed catch diving to his left to dismiss David Miller in Ahmedabad last week was a glowing example of his sharpness.

In the process, he has jumped right to the front of the queue of wicketkeeper-batters aiming to make the cut for the T20 World Cup in the United States and Caribbean. “I think it's pretty obvious that he has got better and better every game,” Delhi Capitals coach Ricky Ponting told reporters on Monday even before Pant’s pyrotechnics against Gujarat Titans sealed a four-run win. “He has started to get a bit more trust and belief in his body as well. Early on, he may have been a little bit apprehensive about what he could do, especially with the wicketkeeping side of it. He had done a little bit of batting coming into the tournament, so he had pretty good trust with bat in hand. With his ability to play every game as a keeper so far, his skills behind the stumps have been really good. His batting is getting better and better. I think he will be in the World Cup squad for sure. He is too good a player and has too big an impact on games for India not to select him in that squad.”

The only caveat with Pant is he’s best suited to batting at a number that allows him a bit of time to settle in before switching gears. That’s invariably No.4 in T20 cricket. Suryakumar Yadav, the world’s top-ranked T20I batter, is likely to occupy that position, which means Pant will need to be a tad more flexible in the middle overs.

While Pant has made the strongest claim nonetheless, the need for a second wicketkeeping option — as a contingency against an injury on the morning of a game — brings the other contenders into the fray. Among the glovemen who have played for India in the shortest format recently, Samson will fancy his chances. Unlike Kishan who opens the batting — a section that is overcrowded by the presence of Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Virat Kohli — Samson has the versatility to bat anywhere in the middle order.

The 29-year-old has an impressive record as Rajasthan Royals skipper this season — 314 runs in eight matches (average 62.8, strike rate 152.43). These runs have come at No.3, but he’s just as capable of moving down the order and selflessly swinging his bat at No.5 or 6. If there’s something that has let Samson down in previous editions, it’s that he endures a dip in the second half of the campaign. That doesn’t seem to be the case so far.

KL Rahul is also likely to be part of the discussion. He hasn’t played T20Is for India since their semi-final exit in the 2022 T20 World Cup. That he can, however, play the dual role of back-up opener or middle-order batter and reserve wicketkeeper may just be a factor to consider for the sake of squad balance. Just last week, an endorsement of his attributes was on display in a 53-ball 82 against Chennai Super Kings. His approach, though, will have to be a lot more attacking.

Amid all this, it is tempting to marvel at the continued relevance of MS Dhoni, 42, and Dinesh Karthik, 38, in this year’s IPL. Dhoni retired from international cricket in 2020 and Karthik hasn’t played for India for two years. But both veterans, most likely in their farewell IPL season, continue to show how to finish a T20 innings. If 35 are needed off the last two overs, you probably wouldn’t put it past them even now.

Karthik has said he continues to be available for selection. It only highlights the glut of contenders for the wicketkeeping slot even as Pant and Samson deserve to be the frontrunners.

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