Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) defeat to Delhi Capitals (DC) on Tuesday night in IPL 2025 may have exposed more than just a weak batting display. The biggest surprise of the night was Rishabh Pant’s demotion in the batting order, so far down that he didn't even feature in the top six. This was the first time Pant batted this low since his debut IPL season in 2016. Read: WATCH: Animated Pant seen arguing with Zaheer Khan during LSG vs DC After the eight-wicket loss in Lucknow, Pant gave a brief explanation to the broadcaster: “The idea was to capitalise. We sent [Abdul] Samad to capitalise on a wicket like that, but after that [David] Miller came in, and we just really got stuck in the wicket, but eventually these are the things we've got to figure out and try to find our best combination going forward.” However, Cheteshwar Pujara wasn’t convinced. Speaking to ESPNcricinfo, he said, “I genuinely don't know what the thought process was. But there's no doubt – he should be batting higher up the order. He's trying to do what MS Dhoni does, but he's nowhere near that level. I still feel he's someone who should be batting during the middle overs, between the 6th and 15th. He's not a finisher, and he shouldn't be doing the job of one.” Nick Knight wants Rishabh Pant to step up While Abdul Samad was promoted based on recent form and David Miller brought in to finish the innings, the move left Pant with just two deliveries to face, not nearly enough to influence the game. Nick Knight, who was also on the panel, said the logic behind the shuffle might be acceptable on paper, but didn’t sit well in practice. “There is your captain, sliding, going backwards in the batting order when you really need him to step up. He’s the one that’s going to be standing up and talking in front of your team… and it just doesn’t look great when the leader is going the other way.” Pant’s 2025 IPL season hasn’t helped his case either. In eight innings so far, he has scored only 106 runs at a strike rate of 96.36. Apart from a lone half-century against CSK, the LSG captain hasn’t made much of an impact with the bat.