Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], June 8 (ANI): Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar wants Men in Blue to play wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson ahead of all-rounder Shivam Dube in their highly-anticipated ICC T20 World Cup clash against Pakistan on Sunday.
At the Nassau County International Stadium on Sunday, it will be a 'Super Sunday' as arch-rivals India and Pakistan will be clashing in their highly anticipated ICC T20 World Cup clash, with plenty of sports superstars in action. Having secured a comprehensive win against Ireland by eight wickets, India will be riding high on confidence and plenty of winning momentum. However, Pakistan on the other hand will be aiming to overcome the blues from defeat to co-hosts and World Cup debutants USA by defeating their biggest rival in the sport.
Speaking to ESPNCricinfo, Manjrekar opted for Samson in the line-up over Dube due to his greater skill set and timing. He also noted that Samson is more mature than he ever was, as a player.
"I believe Sanju Samson has finally matured and this is the best Sanju Samson that India will get at the international level. Earlier maybe not, later than this, also maybe not. Yeah, that is a distinct possibility. I do not think India are going to use much of Dube's bowling. So if it is a straight shootout for batting class you you might want to judge what the matchups are against the opposition bowlers. Could Dube's power and ability to hit spin match up well against whatever opposition we are talking about? Or will you need a greater skill set like Sanju's got, where, again, he plays the ball late, has beautiful timing, and can play the pull shot? That could be deemed a better method, or technique to, for instance, use against Pakistan," said Manjrekar.
Samson, who made his international debut in 2014 in a T20I match, has had ups and downs, having played just 25 T20Is and 16 ODIs for India over the last decade. His T20 stats have been disappointing as he has scored just 374 runs at an average of 18.70 with one half-century. a strike rate of 133.09 and the best score of 77.
Samson has made his way into the T20 WC squad after a career-best Indian Premier League (IPL) which helped take Rajasthan Royals (RR) to the playoffs. He scored 531 runs at an average of 48.27 and a strike rate of 153.46, with five half-centuries. His best score was 86*.
Dube also had a fine IPL 2024, though his form nose-dived in the second half. In 14 matches, he scored 396 runs at an average of 36.00 and a strike rate of 162.29, with three half-centuries and best score of 66*. His ability to smash sixes while standing firm on his ground, makes him a good choice in the middle order. He can deliver exceptionally attacking games against spin and bowl useful overs of pace as well.
India Squad: Rohit Sharma(c), Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal, Sanju Samson, Kuldeep Yadav, Yashasvi Jaiswal
Pakistan Squad: Mohammad Rizwan(w), Babar Azam(c), Usman Khan, Fakhar Zaman, Shadab Khan, Azam Khan, Iftikhar Ahmed, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Naseem Shah, Mohammad Amir, Imad Wasim, Abrar Ahmed, Saim Ayub, Abbas Afridi. (ANI)
