Did India make mistake by dropping Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for NZ vs IND 4th T20I?
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Vaibhav Sooryavanshi played a quick cameo of 45 off 19 in the third T20I.
The fourth T20I between New Zealand and India is underway at Eden Park in Auckland. India have won the series with three consecutive wins, and they will be looking to stretch their lead with a win in Auckland.
India won the toss and chose to bowl first in the fourth match. They made two big changes for the clash. Mayank Yadav replaced veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who looked under par in the first three games.
The second change was Ishan Kishan replacing Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. This decision caught many fans by surprise, given what the 15-year-old player had done in the previous match. He played a brilliant cameo of 45 off 19 balls with 4 fours and 4 sixes.
Sooryavanshi added 133 runs with Abhishek Sharma in 7.1 overs and helped India record the highest powerplay score. Eden Park is a very small venue, and someone like Sooryavanshi would have been dangerous for New Zealand.
However, the management has given preference to Kishan’s experience. It could backfire, as Ishan is returning from an injury and is short of game time. He scored 1 off 3 balls in the first match and didn’t feature in the 2nd and 3rd T20Is.
Ishan Kishan replaced Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the fourth T20I
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Sooryavanshi has made his name after his unbelievable striking ability in the Indian Premier League, which earned him his T20I cap for India. The 15-year-old has also shown glimpses with some good knocks at the international level.
But with Abhishek, Sanju, and Ishan available, he has been sidelined. However, if we look at the current form and momentum, both Ishan and Samson have been a little scratchy in this series.
Sanju played an incredible innings in the first game and won the Man of the Match. But after that, he scored 14 off 17 and 18 off 13 in the last two innings. That is where Sooryavanshi’s exclusion can hurt India.
Meanwhile, India would like to win the ongoing game. They have been superb with the bat so far and need another good batting display at Eden Park to win the fourth game.
Samson and Abhishek will open for India, and Ishan is set to bat at No. 3. Ishan is also part of India’s ODI squad, so the Indian management wants to give him enough game time to prepare.
Why is Vaibhav Sooryavanshi not playing in the 4th NZ vs IND T20I?
India have replaced Vaibhav Sooryavanshi with Ishan Kishan in the playing XI to give Ishan a chance to prepare for the upcoming ODI series.
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