New Delhi: Sanju Samson has been struggling to score runs in the T20I series against New Zealand. He has only managed to score 40 runs at an average of 10 in four T20I matches. He has registered scores of 10, 6, 0 and 24 so far, and his form has been a big talking point of the series, which will conclude on Saturday at the Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram.
The wicketkeeper batter is under immense pressure as Ishan Kishan has been in excellent form, and might replace Sanju as an opener in the upcoming T20 World Cup. But the Indian batting coach Sitanshu Kotak insisted that the management is backing Samson ahead of the T20 World Cup as they know his capabilities.
“He probably has not scored as many runs as everybody would have liked to, but that’s part of cricket. Sometimes, you have five innings in a row where you score so many runs, and sometimes you go through a little rough period,” Kotak said in the pre-match press conference.
“So it’s all up to an individual how to keep his mind strong, and obviously, our job is to keep him in a good frame of mind. He practises and works hard,” he added.
Samson spent more than 30 minutes batting in the nets. He began the session by facing side-armers Hari and Raghu before taking on left-arm spinner Axar Patel. He also had a quick chat with Gautam Gambhir and bowling coach Morne Morkel.
Kishan likely to play fifth T20I
The batting coach also said that Ishan Kishan is likely to play the final T20I match against New Zealand. The left-handed batter has been in great form in the ongoing series, but missed the fourth T20I due to a niggle.
“But whenever Ishan has played, he has always done well. The way he played two innings was really encouraging because in power play, you are looking for someone to play the way he played. And very likely (he will play), at the moment, as far as I know. The physio is here for practice. So, physios will take a call. But I feel very likely,” Sitanshu added.
After the fifth T20I against New Zealand, the Men in Blue will also play a warm-up match against South Africa on February 4 before taking on the USA in the opening match of the T20 World Cup on February 7.