New Delhi: India have a welcome selection headache at the top of the order ahead of their three-match T20I series against Afghanistan, which begins at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on September 13.
Abhishek Sharma, 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi or Sanju Samson, which two players will open for India? All three players have made strong cases for a spot at the top, leaving captain Shreyas Iyer with a difficult call to make. “All three of them, having them in the team is a luxury first of all, and they are flawless in their own departments. Well, it is going to be a tight call because they have been performing consistently,” Iyer told reporters in New Delhi on Saturday.
Samson was named Player of the Tournament at the T20 World Cup, while 15-year-old prodigy Sooryavanshi recently underlined his potential by winning the Player of the Series award during India’s tour of Zimbabwe. Abhishek, meanwhile, has been backed as a young, fearless, and destructive batter who can take on any opponent.
Samson, however, endured a brief dip in form against Ireland after the World Cup and subsequently lost his place in the starting XI for the first T20I against England, and Sooryavanshi made his debut. Samson was also dropped from the Zimbabwe series. During that period, Abhishek was preferred to open alongside the teenage prodigy.
“See, whoever gets the opportunity, it’s definitely for the team’s benefit. And the player sitting outside, it’s important that I have an interaction with him, along with the coach, and give them that confidence. That, you know what, no matter what, you will get your opportunity when the day comes,” Iyer added.
Ishan Kishan fit for Afghanistan clash
Apart from addressing the opening conundrum, Iyer also provided a positive update on Ishan Kishan. The wicketkeeper-batter walked off during Friday’s training session, but Iyer played down any concerns over the incident.
"I feel that he is comfortable at the moment. I interacted with him after the practice session. It was just a small niggle, and he has been playing continuous cricket. We all know the knock he played in the Duleep Trophy. So, definitely a bit fatigued. But today he got that rest, and I am sure that he will be fine for tomorrow,” the 31-year-old said.
Iyer also spoke about Washington Sundar and Nitish Kumar Reddy, who have recently returned from injury concerns during the presser. As per the India captain, both players looked fit after undergoing high-intensity training sessions.
Sundar had missed the recent two-match Test series in Sri Lanka due to a hamstring injury sustained during the second ODI against England in Cardiff in July. Reddy, meanwhile, last featured for India during the home ODI series against Afghanistan in June before aggravating a left quadriceps injury, ruling him out of the tours of Ireland, England and Sri Lanka.
“We are just focusing on tomorrow’s game at the moment. And looking at every individual who has come out of an injury, they are looking fit and fine. They are in great shape. And we had two high-intensity sessions yesterday and the day before yesterday,” Iyer said.
India squad for Afghanistan T20Is: Shreyas Iyer (C), Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Sanju Samson (WK), Ishan Kishan (WK), Tilak Varma (VC), Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Yash Thakur.
