Former Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has opined that any team should continue to remain stable with a final playing XI going into an international tournament; however, on the contrary, he has also cited Ishan Kishan‘s recent form to be very impactful, thus tempting the selectors to call for a change.
Indian selectors backed Sanju Samson for the T20I series against New Zealand after having benched him for a long time through the Australia and South Africa series. However, Samson could not manifest anything special, which shows him to be more worthy of the spot over Shubman Gill.
On the contrary, Indian selectors had also made a startling choice to name Ishan Kishan, the Jharkhand left-hander, into the squad for the ICC T20 World Cup as the second-choice keeper. He has, however, kept the faith shown by the selectors and has performed stunningly on his return.
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Ravichandran Ashwin backs India to keep things stable ahead of World Cup
Former Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has been the biggest supporter of Sanju Samson when he was unreasonably benched from the shortest format of the game. Ashwin has now again come to the forefront when Samson is struggling for form against NZ in the ongoing series.
Leaving out the first two matches, which were high-scoring games, one batting first and the other batting second, where Samson failed to score, he has also failed miserably in Guwahati in the third T20I fixture when India needed to chase just 154 runs. Samson was dismissed for a golden duck off Matt Henry‘s bowling.
Samson, who has just managed 16 runs in the 3 games, could not be defended by Ravichandran Ashwin on this occasion. However, Ashwin has asked for maintaining stability within the team ahead of the marquee event.
“It’s debatable. I personally know Sanju, and I have a personal relationship with him, having played three years with him in Rajasthan. He is a lovely cricketer, and he hasn’t always got enough opportunities.
“Now he is getting chances, but honestly, if you look at it properly, I am not always in favor of making too many changes before the World Cup. I always think that keeping things stable really helps,” Ashwin stated on his YouTube channel.
“But the way Ishan Kishan is batting, how can you just ignore it?” – Ravichandran Ashwin
However, the legendary Indian spinner himself admitted that the way newcomer Ishan Kishan has been batting, it is getting impossible to ignore his exploits. The left-handed batter has been slotted in at no. 3 in place of injured Tilak Varma and has amassed 112 runs in 3 matches with a blistering fifty and a strike rate far above 200.
Ishan Kishan, alongside the skipper Suryakumar Yadav, had won the second T20I for India at Raipur, when India were chasing a massive 209-run total against the Blackcaps.
“But the way Ishan Kishan is batting, how will you ignore him? Of course, it is about keeping things stable, but how can you ignore him? Whatever happened, Shubman is a precedent for this. Why was Shubman in that spot? Because after seeing the partnership between Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma, that partnership looked threatening. But the way Ishan Kishan is batting, how can you just ignore it? It is very tough,” Ashwin remarked.
Ravichandran Ashwin then continued saying that, hence, the Indian management will have to make a massive cut. If they wish to be stable and continue with Samson, then it’s understandable, and if they choose to try the change and promote Ishan Kishan to the top, then it would also be a ‘warranted merit.’
Ashwin sheds light on Sanju Samson’s weak spot in T20Is
During the discussions, Ravichandran Ashwin also revealed the pattern in Sanju Samson’s dismissals. He identified that the wicket-keeper batter was getting dismissed on short balls near the body, which cramped him for room against England.
Against the New Zealand bowlers, as well, his area of concern has been the same: straight and into the body. Hence, Samson would have to work significantly on this area. He claimed that this has grown to be a trend for Samson.
“Now, against New Zealand, if you watch these three T20Is, almost all balls have been hitting the middle and leg stump. They are bowling straight to him, and if it’s short, it’s on the body. That is an area Sanju Samson definitely needs to work on,” Ravichandran Ashwin concluded.
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