India vs New Zealand 3rd T20I, Playing 11: Sanju Samson, Umran Malik to get a look in?

The two names dominating the discussions ahead of India vs New Zealand 3rd T20I are Umran Malik and Sanju Samson.

Umran is celebrating his 23rd birthday on Tuesday (November 22) and would be hoping against hope to find a place in the 11, and the fans want to see him sending down those 150+ kmph thunderbolts against the Kiwis.

Sanju Samson might just have a thin line of hope after Rishabh Pant dished out another underwhelming effort in the second T20I at the Bay Oval where he made a 13-ball 6.

Cries have become shriller to include Sanju in the playing 11 and even some of the experts have expressed the same opinion.

Former India captain Krishnamachari Srikkanth went by that call. “We don’t want to see Orange Cap, Purple Cap players now, we want impact players. Give Sanju Samson, Washington Sundar, Umran malik 4-5 series. Don’t bring back the same old faces after one or two series,” said Srikkanth.

Sanju has played 16 T20Is for India since making his debut against Zimbabwe in 2015 and has made 296 runs at average of 21 and with a strike rate of 135. But in 2022, Sanju has made 179 runs from 5 innings at an average of 44.75 and at a strike rate of 158.41

In contrast, Pant has made 353 runs from 20 innings averaging 22 and with a strike rate of 131.22. So, Sanju is head and shoulders about Pant in person to person comparison this year, and there is a point in people calling for Samson’s inclusion in the squad to tap in that good form.

Former India captain and coach Ravi Shastri too supported Sanju. “Rest all these senior players and give Sanju Samson at least 10 matches continuously. Don’t drop him after 2 matches. Decide after 10 matches, and give that boy also fair chance,” said Shastri.

While fans supported Shastri’s words, they also wondered why he did not give a run to Sanju while he was coaching the India side until 2021 T20 World Cup.