Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in spotlight as India juggle dilemma and injury concerns against Afghanistan

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (R) along with Ishan Kishan and Tilak Varma at a training session ahead of the India vs Afghanistan series. (PTI) New Delhi: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was one of the three members of the squad who took part in an optional training session ahead of the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan starting on Sunday. Tilak Varma, who had arrived earlier in the day, and Abhishek Sharma formed the trio that hit the nets at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. Under the watchful eye of India coach Gautam Gambhir, bowling coach Morne Morkel and batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, Sooryavanshi was the first to hit the nets and received regular feedback from Kotak, with the interview stretching to nearly 20 minutes in some cases.As the session progressed, the 15-year-old from Bihar also engaged in catching and catching practice. However, a light drizzle interrupted the proceedings and forced the ground staff to take cover. As the session drew to a close, Sooryavanshi again had a long conversation with Gambhir and Kotak.The lengthy interviews seemed to indicate his participation in the first competition of the series. Still, the selectors will have a tough choice between his no-holds-barred approach and the equally aggressive batting of Sanju Samson to open the batting alongside Abhishek Sharma.“Having all three of them in the team is a luxury. They are flawless in their departments. It will be tough because they have been performing consistently. Whoever gets an opportunity, it is for the benefit of the team. For the players who are sitting out, it is important that I interact with them along with the coach and give them confidence that whatever the day comes, they will get an opportunity,” Shrey said.Afghanistan captain Ibrahim Zadran, who will be captaining the T20I for the first time, acknowledged Sooryavanshi’s fitness. He admitted that they had made plans with the left-hander and the knowledge of his Orange Cap winning show in the IPL put him in the crosshairs.

It will be a close call as they have been performing consistently. Whoever gets the opportunity is for the benefit of the team

Shreyas Iyer on Sanju Samson vs Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

Sooryavanshi, who scored 776 runs in the IPL, did not have a positive start to life on the international stage, collecting 14, 13 and 15 runs in three T20Is against England before giving way to Samson in the dead rubber at Southampton. However, returns proved fruitful in Zimbabwe, with 151 runs in the series, including a brilliant 18-ball 50 and 49 81.On Friday, when the Indian team ran into spinners and seamers against the batsmen, Sooryavanshi struggled to match Jasprit Bumrah’s sheer pace. When the ball came off the surface, the Samastipur born was beaten several times and it was daunting to deal with the challenge that is Jasprit Bumrah.Unfortunately, Afghanistan do not have the bowling quality that Bumrah produces. Rather, most teams don’t. In the hot and humid conditions in Delhi, with one eye on the sky due to the recent rains, Sooryavanshi could persevere along with former top T20I batsman Abhishek.

Shreyas Iyer speaks to the media ahead of the T20I series against Afghanistan. (PTI)

Apart from the top-of-order dilemma, another point of concern for the Indian team will be the rising number of injuries ahead of the Asian Games in Japan. So much so that the BCCI has started looking for a new head of sports science and medicine at the Center of Excellence (CoE).Jasprit Bumrah, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar and Varun Chakaravarthy return to cricket after time away from the field.Iyer said the number of injuries is not frustrating, while stressing that the sheer volume of cricket these days will affect players sooner rather than later.“I feel it is not frustrating. First we have to understand how many matches a player plays continuously, consistently. He will definitely get injured in some way because the intensity is quite high,” the Indian skipper said on the eve of the T20I series.“We also have to understand that not every player thinks of getting injured on purpose. It’s because they’re putting in effort for the team, and if that effort turns out to be negative, you can’t control that.”

Afghanistan captain Ibrahim Zadran (L) and India captain Shreyas Iyer (R) ahead of the T20I series in New Delhi. (PTI)

“All you can control is whoever is available on the day and we have to give that particular player that confidence.“When we talk about the combination, I feel that it definitely affects the combination, but we know how all the players are. Even if the reinforcement is there, it is just as important to the team and we know that he can do it as well,” he added.Indian Team: Sheryas Iyer (capt), Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Vaibhav Sooryvanshi, Yash Thavarthy, Ravi. ChakraAfghanistan Unit: Ibrahim Zadran (capt), Darwish Rasooli, Noor ul Rahman, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Sediqullah Atal, Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mohammed Nabi, Gulbadin Naib, Nangeliya Kharote, Abdollah Amhedzai, Farqaoq, Fazalhaen, Mujeeb ur Rahman, Noor Ahmed.