 "India vs Zimbabwe: Abhishek Sharma assures spot, but who can make way for seniors in 3rd T20I?")
The five-match T20I series between India and Zimbabwe in Harare is well and truly alive, with the Men in Blue having clinched a clinical win in the second match on Sunday. That came just a day after India’s batters disappointed in a 13-run loss in the first T20I in what turned out to be a low-scoring affair, but one should not forget the fact that this is a young Indian side in transition following the retirements of Virat Kohli , Rohit Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja .
Having said that, some of the seniors who were part of India’s T20 World Cup-winning side in the Caribbean, are set to return for the remaining three matches, which means some changes can be expected ahead of the third match on Wednesday. These players are Sanju Samson, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shivam Dube.
Dube is the only player among the three to have played regularly in the T20 World Cup, with Samson and Jaiswal failing to play a single match in the tournament proper. Samson and Jaiswal thus will be looking to get some game time against Zimbabwe.
Abhishek Sharma, who was dismissed for a four-ball duck in the first match, returned in some fashion in the second match with a 47-ball century, and while he seems to have pretty much sealed that openers’ spot for now, things are likely to change for the rest of the series.
So, who are the players at risk of losing their spots from playing XI following the return of Samson, Jaiswal and Dube? We take a look:
Impact Shorts
More ShortsB Sai Sudharsan
B Sai Sudharsan made his India T20I debut on Sunday, but he did not have to walk out to bat with Abhishek Sharma (100), Ruturaj Gaikwad (77*) and Rinku Singh (48*) scoring a majority of the runs to take India to 234/2.
And with Yashasvi Jaiswal returning to the T20I setup, Sai Sudharsan’s role might be even more redundant. In all likelihood, Jaiswal could open the batting with captain Shubman Gill despite Abhishek scoring a fantastic century. This means that Abhishek could eventually drop down to the No. 3 spot, with Gaikwad and Rinku at No. 4 and No. 5 respectively. Afterall, Jaiswal has opened for India in each of the 17 T20Is he has played so far, scoring 502 runs at an average of 33.46.
Riyan Parag
Riyan Parag had an underwhelming T20I debut for India . He batted in the first match, not having to walk out to bat in the second. As they say, first impressions are the best impressions, but in Parag’s case, it has been otherwise.
Parag, who had an excellent IPL season where he scored 573 runs, had a very short stay in the first T20I managing just two runs off three balls before being dismissed by Tendai Chatara.
Samson, Parag’s teammate and captain at Rajasthan Royals (RR) is the front-runner to replace Parag in the playing XI. While Samson will be raring to get some game time after not playing a single match in the T20 World Cup, it will be interesting to see if the team management persist with Parag once again.
Dhruv Jurel
Another player who could be at risk of losing his place from the XI could be Dhruv Jurel. The 23-year-old is in direct competition with Samson for the wicketkeeper’s spot and his spot will only be at risk should the Men in Blue prefer the more experienced Sanju.
However, what has plagued the Kerala batter is inconsistency. Samson has played just one T20I (against Afghanistan in January) since the turn of the year and has often been unable to convert starts into big knocks.
Rinku Singh
Following his exploits in the second match against Zimbabwe, it might be hard to ignore Rinku Singh from the playing XI, but should he be dropped from one of the remaining three matches, Shivam Dube could take his spot.
Dube played a few crucial knocks in the T20 World Cup including a 16-ball 27 in the final against South Africa. However, what remains a cause for concern is his inability to connect the ball at times. This is where Rinku Singh is at an advantage and his fearless approach of batting is considered as a big plus.
As for Shivam Dube, he provides a worthy seam bowling option for India although his role with the ball was limited in the T20 World Cup. Harare, in fact, produced a bit of bounce and seam in the early phases of the second T20I as the Zimbabwe bowlers reduced India to 36/1 in the powerplay before Abhishek, Gaikwad and Rinku changed the gears.
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