Sanju Samson of India (Photo: Pankaj Nangia/Getty Images) Defending champions India’s national cricket team are considering changes to their struggling opening partnership ahead of their Super Eights match against Zimbabwe’s national cricket team in Chennai on Thursday. With semi-final qualification hanging in the balance, India are eyeing wicket-keeper batsman Sanju Samson as a possible option at the top of the order in their second Super Eights match.
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Opener Abhishek Sharma endured a lean drive, including three consecutive ducks, compounding India’s problems. The defending champions opened the Super Eights with a heavy 76-run loss to the South African national cricket team, leaving little room for error. The qualifying equation is now simple. Win the remaining two matches and the promotion remains largely in India’s control. Slip up and they could be forced to rely on other results. Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak confirmed that the combinations are being discussed internally. “There can be changes, yes,” Kotak told reporters. “And of course it goes without saying that we’re discussing it because there are two left-handers, number three is a left-hander. While Kotak played down concerns about the left-hander’s top order, he admitted that repeated early dismissals had prompted reflection. “Personally, I don’t think there’s any problem there, but because we’ve lost a first-over goal in three games, obviously any team would think,” he said. India’s batting core is dominated by left-handers, a pattern exploited by the opposition. Sides like Pakistan National Cricket Team, Netherlands National Cricket Team and South Africa started off-spin and dismissed one of the openers in the very first over. In the defeat to South Africa, Ishan Kishan fell on the fourth ball after captain Aiden Markram started with off-spin. Samson, a right-hander who featured earlier in the tournament against Namibia when Abhishek was unwell, could offer balance at the top.
