As the focus shifts to the last two T20s of the ongoing India-Australia series, the one call that will be of interest is the selection of the wicketkeeper-batter. Ahead of the Asia Cup, the expectation was for Jitesh Sharma to start in the middle order, with Shubman Gill taking up the opening position. The team management, however, opted for Sanju Samson and batted him at No. 5 in the tournament. The decision was a mixed success, with Samson not doing too badly in a position that was a first for him. In fact, in the final, it was the partnership between Tilak Varma and Samson that brought India back into the game.
In Australia, the move to bat Samson at five continued, and Suryakumar Yadav came out at No. 3 in Canberra. Things, however, changed in Melbourne, with Samson sent in at 3 against a fired up Josh Hazlewood. He wasn’t successful, and Jitesh was given an opportunity in the middle order in the third game in Hobart. To be fair, Jitesh did extremely well and should play the last two games. Someone who has finally got an opportunity needs to be given a long rope and Jitesh should get a fair run. But that leaves us with the Samson question, and what’s in store for him in the months ahead.
If Jitesh makes the middle-order spot his own, will Samson get a spot in the squad for the World Cup? Has the treatment of Samson been fair? He scored a lot of runs in the top of the order as opener, including three hundreds, but was pushed down the order to accommodate Gill. He wasn’t as successful in the middle order, but then, we can indeed ask if he was given a proper run at No. 5. In Australia, for example, he batted just once at No. 3 and failed. For the record, Gill and Surya too failed in that game, all of them getting out to the pressure exerted by Hazlewood. Is it fair for Samson to be dropped after this one failure?
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With Yashasvi Jaiswal waiting in the wings as the third opener, what’s the future of Samson in the team? Will he be persisted with as second wicketkeeper, or will he find it hard to hold on to the spot for the World Cup? Also, will this put pressure on Gill as opener? While Gill is firmly ensconced in the red ball and ODI formats, his performance in T20Is since the Asia Cup began haven’t been standout. With so much talent in the wings, will India try Jaiswal out or give Samson another go at the top of the order? Gill too will have to perform, for ultimately, it is all about performance and nothing more.
As far as the Arshdeep Singh-Harshit Rana debate is concerned, that’s been put to rest with Arshdeep picking up two wickets at the top of the order in the powerplay in Hobart. That’s the primary job, and it will be interesting to see If India rest Bumrah and play them both in the last two games.
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