‘We have plans for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’: New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner ahead of T20I series against India

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (AFP Photo) New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner believes Vaibhav Sooryavanshi could be a tough batsman if given a chance in India’s playing XI for the five-match T20I series. The series begins on Thursday and Santner said his team was already working on plans to deal with the young left-hander.Sooryavanshi has not played regularly for India since being picked for the UK tour this year. Regular openers Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson did well to curtail his chances. However, Santner believes the 15-year-old has an important role to play for India, whether in this series or in the future.

New Zealand has plans for Sooryavanshi

Santner said New Zealand studied Sooryavanshi’s aggressive batting, including his performances in the IPL. The Kiwi skipper also pointed out that the Indian batsmen faced short-slip bowling during the England tour.“He (Sooryavanshi) didn’t play in the last series (against West Indies) but we know how good he is in the IPL. We know other players like Abhishek are doing very well. But he (Sooryavanshi) has a huge role to play for India, whether it’s in this series or not, but in the future,” Santner said at a pre-series press conference on Wednesday.“If he gets a crack in this series, we’ve seen what he can do and it’s been quite difficult for guys to stop him. I know in England they’ve been pretty short and hard on a lot of Indian batsmen. I think we’ve seen him in the IPL and how aggressive he can be. So we’ve got some plans for him if he happens to play.”

Santner expects Bhuvneshwar to enjoy the New Zealand conditions

Santner also spoke about the return of veteran Bhuvneshwar Kumar to the Indian T20I team after an absence of almost four years.The New Zealand skipper expects Bhuvneshwar to be effective in local conditions, especially with the new ball.“I think Bhuvi will love these conditions in New Zealand. If there’s something in the wicket, he’ll find some of it. He’s still been able to pinch and swing the ball on some of the flats in India, so I think it’s going to be a challenge (for New Zealand) with the new ball out here.”“It’s quite challenging as a bowler in India these days. We saw 250 being chased in the recent series. Who wants to be a bowler, but he (Bhuvneshwar) might like it a bit more here.”

Santner hopes the bowlers will have their say

Santner hopes the series will give the bowlers a chance to dominate, although he warned conditions could change quickly.“I hope so. I think it might be the first game, but it can change quite quickly. It depends a lot on the weather. The second game is the pitch used, the same pitch we used in the first game. It might be a bit flatter.”“If it squeaks, we have to play to it. If it’s flat, you have to play to it,” said the 34-year-old left-arm spinner.Santner added that the Indian batsmen have enough experience to handle different conditions around the world.“If there’s a bit of it, you might have to convert a few shots, but they’ve played on quick, bouncy wickets before. They’ve played all over the world and done really well. It’s going to be a challenge in this series and we’re looking forward to it,” he added.

Santner backs India but expects a challenge

Ahead of the series, Santner acknowledged India’s strength while also pointing out that the conditions in New Zealand will be different than at home.“They (India) are a well gelled team and they are playing good cricket. We know the conditions will be a bit different to what they had at home. The pitches here will be a bit bouncy. I think there are still memories and a lot of this group was at the World Cup.“And of course the series before when India beat us 4-1. So again we know they’re a great team and they’ve done it for a long time.”Santner said the conditions could give New Zealand a slight advantage, but both teams would need contributions from all their squads.“We’re going down the country, the conditions can change. I think both teams change a little bit just with the schedule and the quick turnaround. So it’s going to be a push for both teams to put in some good performances.”After the five-match T20I series, India and New Zealand will play a five-match ODI series followed by two Tests.