India, March 26 -- Rishabh Pant heads into IPL 2026 with plenty riding on his shoulders, especially in the white-ball format, where his place is no longer assured. He has slipped out of India's T20I plans and is still searching for consistency to cement a spot in the ODI team's XI. The previous IPL season didn't help his case either. Despite carrying a hefty INR 27 crore price tag, Pant struggled to deliver regularly. He managed 269 runs in 14 matches, with an unbeaten 118 being the lone standout, but that knock came when his team was already out of contention. For most of the campaign, he couldn't quite get going, and a strike rate of 133.16 only added to the concerns. With expectations still high, IPL 2026 now shapes up as a crucial opp...