Former India wicketkeeper Farokh Engineer talks about Rishabh Pant's flawed technique, clarifies Diana Edulji jibe

Former India player Farokh Engineer is no stranger to the art of wicketkeeping but he’s also infamous for making comments that often land him in trouble. Delivering the Dilip Sardesai Memorial Lecture at the Cricket Club of India in Mumbai on Thursday, Engineer spoke about Rishabh Pant’s wicketkeeping skills and also responded to the jibe he took against former Committee of Administrators member Diana Edulji, who was present at the event and asked him to clarify his comments. [caption id=“attachment_4067655” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  File image of former Indian cricketer Farokh Engineer. AFP[/caption] Talking about the Pant’s role behind the stumps, Engineer said there’s no doubt about his talent as a wicketkeeper, but added that he needed to work on his technique. “He (Rishabh Pant) is an extremely talented wicketkeeper, but his technique is flawed. He gets up too soon. These days, they have batsman-wicketkeepers and not wicketkeeper-batsman,” Engineer said. The 81-year-old also added that he spoke to Pant during the World Cup and told him he wanted to have two or three net sessions to improve the young wicketkeeper’s technique. “He came to me at Old Trafford during the World Cup and we had a long chat. I wish I had him with me for two or three net sessions and he would’ve been a much better wicketkeeper.” Pant has come under criticism for his display behind the stumps and according to Engineer, the wicketkeeper is under lot of pressure to perform. “Now, there are batting coaches, fielding coaches. What can a fielding coach tell Rishabh Pant about wicketkeeping? Everyone is there to criticise the young man. He has so much pressure on him.” Apart from talking about wicketkeeping, Engineer found himself on the defensive on the evening, needing to clarify his comments about Edulji when she confronted him during Q-and-A session at the event. Engineer had earlier questioned the credentials of Edulji, who was then the member of CoA, the committee that was running Indian cricket. “I just heard Farukh saying Parsis don’t have a dirty bone in their body. I would like to know….you spoke a lot about the current selectors, and in that statement, you passed a snide remark about me. I would like to tell you that I played 30 Test matches too, so that is not little cricket I played. You said she has hardly played any cricket,” Edulji said to Engineer. In response, Engineer said, “There was nothing personal against you (Edulji). About the selectors, I’d spoken about them earlier and there was reason for that comment. “I speak my mind. I said that the CoA was a waste of time and I meant that. I don’t think much came out of it really and the money that was paid or spent in crores that could have been better utilised for grassroots cricket in the country.” Edulji later told reporters that CoA was brought to improve standard of cricket and the players also benefited from the committee’s presence. “CoA was brought in with a purpose. We covered a lot of ground, we tried to improve the standard of cricket, the infrastructure. The players have benefited a lot and that’s why the performance of the teams – both men and women – have been outstanding. I think we could have done more,” she said. “I am glad that it’s now run by a cricketer. That’s what Justice (RM) Lodha (Panel) wanted, to let the cricketers have a say. Let’s hope that they do well.”