With a Super Over win at Seddon Park in Hamilton, Team India clinched the five-match T20 series against New Zealand. It was for the first time when Men in Blue won a T20 series in the Kiwi Land. They have had a couple of trips to New Zealand but on each occasion, India failed to the job. Under Virat Kohli, India snatched a win in the third T20.
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India now have series in the bag and might want to give a chance to the benched players. Kohli also hinted that the team management might go for players who have not played in the series so far. He specially mentioned the names of Washington Sundar and Navdeep Saini, confirming that the duo will play next two T20Is.
But what about Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant? Will they get a chance to play in the series? or will they continue to sit out? Let’s check out –
Samson is a top-order batsman and looking at India’s top order, there is no chance of him getting an opportunity in the fourth T20I. Team India will not tinker with the packed top three and expect Samson to warm bench for another game.
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However, the team management might consider giving Rohit a rest for the fifth game since he is a part of ODI squad and will also play two Test matches. But this is just an assumption for now.
As far as Rishabh is concerned, he doesn’t hold a chance of playing fourth game. His inclusion will mean Rahul will have to leave the gloves and that is not happening for now. Kohli has already said that they will continue to back Rahul as wicket-keeper in the long run, which could see him (Rishabh) sit out for long now.
He can play as a batsman but the team management can’t rest or drop either of Shreyas yer and Manish Pandey at this stage. They need long backing, which means there’s no place for Rishabh. While Samson might get at least one game, Rishabh might not get a place in playing XI even in ODIs.