Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Sanju Samson

NEW DELHI: Former India cricketer Irfan Pathan suggests that Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s impressive performances could make it difficult for anyone, including Sanju Samson, to reclaim his place in India’s T20I side. The young batter continued his fine form with a composed 81-run innings in the third and final T20I against Zimbabwe on July 26, showing both maturity and power on a challenging Harare pitch. He played some eye-catching shots, including a straight drive off a yorker from Brad Evans and a massive 102-metre six against Sikandar Raza. Praising the youngster, Pathan wrote, “Jiski vhi jagah lega ye bachha use wapis nahi aane dega…How Special this Vaibhav Suryavanshi is??” (Whoever’s place this kid takes, he won’t let them come back. How special is this Vaibhav Suryavanshi?)His comments have added to the debate over whether Sooryavanshi has moved ahead of Samson in India’s T20 plans.

Samson started as India’s first-choice opener during the Ireland T20Is but managed only low scores, leading to Sooryavanshi getting opportunities in the England series. Although the youngster couldn’t produce big knocks consistently in that series and Samson returned for the fifth T20I, neither change helped India avoid a whitewash.

Selection battle ahead

Samson was then left out of the Zimbabwe T20I series, while Sooryavanshi grabbed his chance with another impressive innings. With India’s next T20 assignment set to be the Asian Games, the competition for the opening spot between Samson and Sooryavanshi is expected to remain a major talking point.At the same time, Abhishek Sharma’s place at the top has also come under scrutiny after a poor run of scores. The opener has managed just 2, 8, 1, 3, 16 and 10 in his last six T20I innings, raising fresh questions over India’s preferred opening combination.