Former India batter Wasim Jaffer has said that Ishan Kishan has taken his game to another level. He also added that while Rishabh Pant was once well ahead of Ishan, the gap between the two has steadily narrowed. His comments came ahead of
India’s upcoming tour of New Zealand, which begins with the T20I series on October 22, followed by the ODI and Test series as well.

Speaking during a discussion on his YouTube channel (Wasim Jaffer Official), he said: “I would say Ishan Kishan, who has taken his game to a much higher level. At one point, it felt like Rishabh Pant was well ahead of Ishan Kishan. But now, it seems Ishan is steadily closing that gap. So, I feel this season will be very important for Rishabh Pant, whether it is the Ranji Trophy, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy or the IPL. I think he will have to elevate his game. The gap is gradually narrowing, especially with Dhruv Jurel also in the mix.”

“Ishan Kishan has become so consistent across formats that, honestly, you don’t see many wicketkeeper-batters ahead of him at the moment. KL Rahul is keeping wickets in ODIs, but Ishan is someone you can also play purely as a batter,” he again shared.

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However, Wasim Jaffer also stated that Rishabh Pant is the best wicketkeeper-batter in Tests at the moment, having played many match-winning innings and enjoyed a brilliant career so far as well.

“You cannot put Rishabh Pant behind the others. He has played series-defining and match-winning innings on several occasions. He has been dismissed in the 90s so many times that I feel he might have scored another 10-15 centuries by now otherwise. “I think Rishabh Pant has been outstanding in such a short career. The kind of innings he has played is something I have rarely seen from anyone. We have obviously seen Adam Gilchrist do it, but after him, I don’t think many players have produced such outstanding innings in such a short period,” he concluded.