India enters the final match of the bilateral series with a 3-1 lead. Despite the dominant run, the Indian team management has been working on a number of things to maintain good form ahead of the T20 World Cup, which starts on February 7 and is jointly hosted by India and Sri Lanka.
Sanju Samson’s drought remains a concern
India will be the heavy favorites to win the tournament. To keep the spirit and momentum high, management wants to tick all the boxes. For now, Sanju Samson’s drought is causing some headaches for the team.
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Ahead of the 5th T20I between India and New Zealand at the Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, Team India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak revealed that the management was backing Sanju Samson but so far the keeper-batsman has not achieved any results.
In the ongoing series, Samson is facing a difficult phase after returning to the top of the rankings. He has scored just 40 runs in the last four matches, at an average of 10 and a strike rate of 142.86.
“Sanju Samson is a senior player. Probably he hasn’t scored as many runs as he should have. Our job is to keep him in a good space. We all know what he is capable of,” the batting coach said at the pre-match press conference.
Ishan Kishan’s form put pressure on Sanju Samson
Samson’s bat speed and footwork were criticized for the repeated early dismissals against the New Zealand pacers. The hitter started playing shots early in the game, before getting used to the conditions; As a result, he fell short time and time again.
Samson was under pressure as Ishan Kishan, another keeper-batsman in the line-up, was in sublime form before being removed from the playing combination in the fourth match due to a niggle.
Kishan’s injury did not look serious as the left-hander was spotted on the sidelines as energetic as before during the match. Kotak hopes he can play in the upcoming match but the final decision will be taken by the physio.
“Kishan is likely to play. Physio will take the call,” he confirmed,” Kotak said.
Abhishek is a smart player – India coach
Besides Sanju Samson’s poor form, there are also several positives for the team. The way Abhishek Sharma is performing is excellent. Kotak continuously informed the opener in an attempt to further improve his batting.
To make his performance more polished, he often spoke to the skipper, Suryakumar Yadav, who was also recovering from a prolonged bad spell.
“Abhishek is a smart player. In the second game he was caught at deep square leg. In the next game he was prepared for that. He does talk to Surya; he is open,” Kotak added.
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