Long before India began their practice session in Nottingham, what caught everyone’s attention was the absence of Shreyas Iyer and Sanju Samson. Neither player arrived with the team. Then came another twist. During training, India’s squad for the Zimbabwe T20Is was announced, and Samson’s omission added another layer to the mystery surrounding the wicketkeeper.
The 31-year-old plays only one format, and his omission has certainly raised plenty of eyebrows. He missed the last game, did not turn up for the practice session, and has now been left out of the Zimbabwe tour. All these signs indicate that India are unlikely to make any changes to the top order in the third T20I at Trent Bridge.
It was an optional training session. Shreyas was struck hard on one of his hands during the previous game, so his absence may simply been a precautionary measure. It will be interesting to see whether he features in what is now a series-deciding T20I at Trent Bridge.
Before India arrived for training, England’s Josh Tongue addressed the media. Tongue, who made his T20I debut in the previous match and troubled Vaibhav Sooryavanshi early on with a barrage of short-pitched deliveries, hinted that England could adopt the same strategy against the teenage sensation once again.
“As a bowler, I like to hit the pitch hard. The focus will be on executing our plans well and trying not to be predictable,” Tongue said during the press conference while responding to a question from RevSportz.
Sooryavanshi had an extended batting session, with a clear focus on handling the short ball. Even before the Durham T20I, he had a separate session honing his skills against short-pitched bowling.
The same was the case in Nottingham. Throwdown specialists peppered him with a barrage of bouncers. On his debut, Tongue and Jofra Archer repeatedly tested him with sharp short deliveries aimed around the off-stump line. The 15-year-old was clearly doing his homework for the challenge he expects from England’s fast bowlers. One delivery struck him in the stomach, leaving him on the ground for around five minutes before he resumed batting. Once the session ended, the youngster tried his hand behind the camera, clicking pictures of the coaches. He then walked over to the fans to sign A few autographs. Interestingly, Harshit Rana spent more time batting than bowling.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir also had separate conversations with vice-captain Tilak Varma and Ishan Kishan after both had completed their batting sessions.
Suryansh Shedge spent a long time in the nets, both with the bat and bowling at full tilt, and could come back into the playing XI. Given Ravi Bishnoi’s disappointing outing with the ball in Manchester and the fact that he did not bowl much during the nets session, there are indications that the leg-spinner could miss out from the playing XI.
Follow Revsportz for latest sports news
The post Sooryavanshi’s intense net session contrasts Shreyas and Samson’s absence in Nottingham appeared first on Sports News Portal | Revsportz.
