Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 18 (ANI): Former Indian cricketer and assistant coach Abhishek Nayar spoke on the chances of teen prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi featuring in the T20Is against New Zealand, saying that the chances would be that he still has to wait for his chances while the trio of Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan maintain the left-right hand combination to prevent spinner Michael Bracewell's entry in the powerplay.
The five away T20Is against New Zealand will start from November 22 onwards. Sooryavanshi, 15, has featured in eight T20Is, having made 246 runs at a strike rate of over 186 with two fifties. Despite all the hype and marketing attached to his talent and ball-striking, Sooryavanshi has found himself warming the bench in favour of more experienced and proven pairing of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma. He did not get any chances during the recently-concluded five match home series against West Indies, which ended in a 2-2 draw.
Speaking on JioHotstar's 'Out or Not Out', JioStar expert Nayar said about Sooryavanshi featuring in the NZ series, "Often, for a team's culture, if you are a coach or a captain, it is crucial to make the right decisions. If you make haphazard decisions, the impact on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's career is one thing, but the impact on team culture will be far greater. So, according to me, the decision will be, 'Vaibhav, wait for your time, you will also get opportunities.' Maybe in a series where Sanju isn't there or is rested, he will play."
"But as long as there is a left-hander at number three and at the top, you will always think that a right-hander in between is necessary. So, it is not so much about Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Sanju Samson; it is about having that left-right combination so that a bowler like Bracewell does not come and bowl out his overs in the powerplay," he added.
On Sanju's recent run in T20Is, which has been a mix of lows and some incredible highs, Abhishek said that Sanju "plays with everyone's emotions" with his form and, despite his patchy run, Sooryavanshi will have to wait.
"Sanju plays with everyone's emotions because he would not score runs for two matches, and everyone starts raising questions, 'Vaibhav Sooryavanshi should play, Sanju Samson isn't capitalising on his chances, how long will we wait?' And at that very moment, he will score an 80 in no time. Sanju is that kind of player who will repeatedly give you opportunities to raise questions about him and then will play a big knock, making the most of his chances. So, there will be moments when there will be talks about his place, but Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will have to wait," he signed off.
Samson was India's second-highest run-scorer in WI T20Is, with 168 runs in five matches at an average of 33.60 and a strike rate of 195.34, with two fifties. His best score is 82. This year in 25 matches and innings, he has made 703 runs at an average of 29.29, with a strike rate of 179.33, with seven fifties to his name. (ANI)
"The decision will be...": Abhishek Nayar on Sooryavanshi featuring in NZ T20Is
