India's captain, Suryakumar Yadav, has provided an important update regarding the upcoming T20I series against Bangladesh. He announced that Sanju Samson will be joining Abhishek Sharma as opener for the matches against Bangladesh.
"Sanju Samson will play and open the batting in this series, going forward with Abhishek Sharma," Suryakumar Yadav said in the pre-match press conference.
Notably, Samson usually bats at number three or in the middle order. His new role as an opener will be a rare sight for the Indian fans to behold. This opportunity for Samson comes as players Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill are being rested for the T20I series.
This year, Sanju Samson has not participated in any matches since the warm-up against Bangladesh during the T20 World Cup. However, he had a remarkable season in the IPL this year with the Rajasthan Royals, where he scored an impressive 531 runs in 15 matches, with an average of 48.27 and a strike rate of 153.47 while captaining the team.
In the pre-match press conference, Yadav said that the young fast bowler Mayank Yadav could be the team's X-factor.
"He has that X-factor, as we've seen in the IPL. It feels good to see all these pieces come together," Suryakumar said.
"I haven't faced him in the nets because of different orders, but I've seen him bowl and know the potential he holds. That extra pace is his X-factor...We just need to manage him well because of the heavy workload from state and franchise games. He is a great addition to the Indian team, and we hope he performs well," he added.
Mayank Yadav consistently clocked mid-150 km/h speeds for the Lucknow Super Giants during three of his four IPL appearances, earning consecutive Player of the Match awards that garnered international attention. However, his season was cut short by a back injury, a common issue for fast bowlers.
India and Bangladesh will lock horns with each other in the three-match T20I series. The first match will be played in Gwalior on October 6, followed by October 9 in Delhi and October 12 in Hyderabad.
(With inputs from agencies)
