Former Indian captain and chief selector Kris Srikkanth has slammed Sanju Samson for his repeated failures against the short ball after his poor performance in the recent five-match T20I series against England. Notably, India had won the T20I series by a 4-1 scoreline against England.
Expressing his frustration, Srikkanth said that Samson’s “ego trip” may have played a role in his downfall after a stunning start as the Indian opener last year. The former Indian chief selector has pointed out that the Kerala batter was more focused on proving his worth than adapting his game to overcome the short-pitch challenge posed by England’s pace attack in the T20I series.
Kris Srikkanth criticizes Sanju Samson’s lack of adaptability after failures against England
Notably, Sanju Samson’s performance during the recent T20I series was a huge letdown, with scores of 26, 5, 3, 1, and 16 against England. The 30-year-old was sent back to the pavilion three times by England’s fiery fast bowler Jofra Archer, while Saqib Mahmood and Mark Wood got success once.
Read Also: ‘Shivam Dube shut Kevin Pietersen up’: MS Dhoni’s ex-teammate drops bold verdict on concussion sub drama
England fast bowlers consistently targeted Samson’s body with short-pitched deliveries and got success. Despite repeated failures, the right-handed batter showed no sign of adjusting his approach, falling into the same trap over and over again in the recent T20I series at home.
But the most disappointing thing was that Samson didn’t have a backup plan, as he was constantly finding fielders in the deep without offering much resistance. The lack of adaptability in his game has raised serious doubts about his ability to handle the pacey deliveries.
Sanju Samson seems to have missed the bus: Kris Srikkanth
Reacting to the Rajasthan Royals skipper’s struggle, Kris Srikkanth stressed that Samson must work on his weakness against short balls; otherwise, he could lose his spot to Yashasvi Jaiswal once the left-handed opener makes his return to India’s T20I squad.
Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel: “Sanju Samson seems to have missed the bus. For the fifth time, getting out in the same manner. He has played a similar shot. I think he is trying to show his ego. He is trying to say ‘no, no, I will play this shot’. Is he going on an ego trip or struggling?”
He added, “I am not sure. It’s very sad. I am disappointed. We spoke about why he was not picked in the Champions Trophy squad. If he continues playing like this, let’s say thank you, sorry, Yashasvi Jaiswal is back. In the next T20I match, Yashasvi automatically comes in, in my opinion.”
Read Also: Watch: India’s senior member held up by Nagpur police, denied hotel entry
Suryakumar Yadav is not able to execute his flicks: Srikkanth
Meanwhile, Kris Srikkanth also mentioned that Suryakumar Yadav is facing a similar problem, struggling to control his natural instincts after India’s T20I skipper managed only 28 runs in five innings against England.
The former chief selector also said that Suryakumar is one of his favorite players, and he hopes the skipper will make some corrections and make a strong comeback with the bat.
Srikkanth signed off by saying, “Look at Suryakumar Yadav. Show me his numbers from the last 10 innings, that’s what we need to look at in T20Is. Look at this series, he has tried to play the same shot. He has tried to flick and has gotten top-edges that have carried.
I think Suryakumar is not able to execute his flicks, which have been his strengths, due to the extra pace. I don’t know if he is playing too early. He is rushing into his shots, not playing relaxed.”
Leave feedback about this