Former Indian batter Subramaniam Badrinath reckons selection yardsticks can’t be the same for Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson amid the T20I series against Afghanistan. While Abhishek has performed more consistently in the shortest format of the game, Samson has often been hit-and-miss.
Samson scored a fine knock of 57 runs off just 22 balls in the second T20I against Afghanistan, which was a crucial knock for him as the pressure was mounting on the opener.
Abhishek, on the other hand, has returned with scores of 82 and 39 in the first two games against Afghanistan.
Subramaniam Badrinath said on his YouTube Channel, “You’ve to give the leeway to Abhishek Sharma because he was extremely consistent last year. He scored a huge quantity of runs at a brilliant strike rate and was the No. 1-ranked player in the world. When you have all these under your belt, his case can’t be compared with Sanju Samson’s. There can’t be the same yardsticks for Abhishek and Samson when Abhishek has got numbers like these.”
On the other hand, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi hasn’t received his chance in the first two games against Afghanistan. The former CSK batter, Badrinath, said Sooryavanshi will need to wait for his chances.
“I have nothing against Sooryavanshi and I like him a lot. But let him wait; he’s only 15. So he can play when his time comes. Say another player named ‘A’ wins the Orange Cap next year, looks extremely talented, and is only 14 or 15. Will you drop Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and pick that player? Because this is what happens in India. There will be hype created because there is no shortage of talent in India. So there needs to be a fixed process followed,” said Badrinath (via the aforementioned source).
Badrinath reckons if India back Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the next few games, then Samson should not return to the playing XI.
“Also, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi shouldn’t modify his game, which might happen if he’s in and out of the team. This approach is what has got him to this point. However, if he’s given the next 10 games in the West Indies and New Zealand, you can’t go back to Sanju Samson again. It should be like you’ve moved on because he’s 30+.”
The third and final T20I between Afghanistan and India will be played in Delhi on Thursday.
