Former Indian batter Ambati Rayudu reckons Lucknow Super Giants skipper Rishabh Pant must improve his game against the spinners after they claimed a nine-run win against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow on Thursday.

Pant smashed a crucial cameo of 32 runs off 10 balls with the help of four fours and two maximums. Thus, he scored his runs at a blistering strike rate of 320 and helped his team post 209-3 in 19 overs.

However, Pant has struggled to give consistent performances throughout IPL 2026. The left-hander has scored 236 runs in 10 matches of the season at an average of 29.50 and a strike rate of 139.64

Ambati Rayudu said on ESPN Cricinfo, “His ability to play spin has to improve drastically. He’s good against pace, whether it’s playing against the new ball or at the death. He’s brilliant against pace, he just needs to get his spin game sorted. [Being a floater] is a temporary fix, but in the larger picture, he needs to work on his game against spin.”

On the other hand, former New Zealand women cricketer Katey Martin said Pant had a lot of clarity when he smashed a quickfire knock against the defending champions.

She said, “If the game is set up for him [it helps]. Nicholas Pooran at No. 3 has made a difference – being able to have a platform allowed him to go [after the bowling]. He just looked like he had a lot of clarity. It looked like every ball he wanted to hit for four, but he didn’t. A bit more of a smarter way that we have seen as well. What we saw tonight is what we are probably used to seeing of Pant when he is in form.”

Lucknow Super Giants will next take on Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, on Sunday.