[ad_1]
NEW DELHI: The National Selection Committee has decided to bench Sanju Samson for the three-match T20I series in Zimbabwe starting on July 23. Ishan Kishan will take over the role of chief wicket-taker while Prabhsimran Singh has been given the first call-up. TOI understands that the selectors have only rested Samson for now to give more opportunities to youngsters waiting in the wings.Sources told TOI that the aim is to give teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi more exposure at the top level and the series against Zimbabwe is the perfect opportunity to do so. BCCI was on the same page. “It will look very strange if a senior player like Samson is forced to sit out the tour. It should be remembered that Samson is already in the squad for the Asian Games due to travel in the last week of September. Ishan is the preferred wicketkeeper to manage the team. Because the field is where standards have fallen. The team needs good fielders and not wicketkeepers to replace them,” BCCI sources told TOI. “Over the last decade, tours of Zimbabwe have been used to test the strength of the bench. Washington Sundar, Axar Patel and Harshit Rana have been given rests. The bowling line-up has a new look,” the source added.The committee is committed to giving Sooryavanshi as much international exposure as possible. The Indian team management handed the 15-year-old his international debut in place of Samson in the second T20I against England in Manchester on Saturday.Batsmen needed in specialist positionsBarring three crucial knocks in March’s T20 World Cup-winning campaign, Samson’s consistency has been questionable. He scored just one run in the last three T20Is in Ireland and England. The selectors and the team management feel that playing both Samson and Ishan has thrown the entire middle order out of their positions. Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube and Axar Patel are not playing in their respective positions and this has affected the returns as Varma and Axar look out of their comfort zone. The selectors are looking at strengthening the lower middle order for stronger finishes in the T20 team.
[ad_2]
Source link
