Rishabh Pant dismisses Sunil Gavaskar's theory, accuses DC before IPL auctions: ‘It was not driven by money'

With question marks hanging over Pant's possible return to DC through their RTM card, has the wicketkeeper-batter cut ties with the Delhi team completely?

In response to a post by Star Sports in which legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar wonders if Pant left DC because of a disagreement over fees, Pant said his release had nothing to do with money.

“See suctions are completely different. So we don’t know how it would go. But what I feel is that Delhi would certainly want Rishabh Pant back in their squad,” said Sunil Gavaskar.

“Sometimes you know when the player is to be retained, there is a talk between the franchise and the player about the expected fees.

“As you can see some of the players who have been retained by their franchise. They have gone for more than say what the number one retention fee deduction would be, so clearly, I think maybe there was some disagreement over there, but my feeling is that Delhi would definitely want Rishabh Pant back.

“Because they need a captain as well. If Rishabh Pant is not their squad then they have to look for a new captain as well so my feeling is Delhi will definitely go for Rishabh Pant,” he added.

In reply to Gavaskar's comments, Pant said: “My retention wasn’t about the money for sure that I can say.”

Pant seems to have made his displeasure regarding the Delhi Capitals management and his disagreements with them quite public with this post, indicating a breakdown in the relationship despite a near decade-long association with the franchise in the IPL.

The wicketkeeper played for Delhi 111 times since his debut in 2016, and currently stands as the franchise’s leading run-scorer with 3284 runs. Pant also took captaincy of the Delhi franchise in 2021, but Delhi have only reached the IPL playoffs in one year since.

Delhi chose to retain Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Tristan Stubbs, and Abhishek Porel, and with Pant choosing to go elsewhere, will be in the market for a big-name Indian batter. Shreyas Iyer could see a return to Delhi on the cards, while KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan will also be under consideration.

Conversely, Rishabh Pant could be set for a reunion with Ricky Ponting at Punjab Kings, with Delhi’s northern rivals heading into the auction with the biggest purse and Pant likely to be the most-wanted player in the auction this year. Pant will likely be seeking captaincy of the team he is chosen by in the auction.

There have also been links of Pant to Chennai Super Kings, but that seems to be an unlikely destination with CSK already having retained MS Dhoni as their wicketkeeper and Ruturaj Gaikwad as their captain.

Pant will be in action in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia, beginning on November 22 at Perth. The IPL auction will take place on November 24 and 25.