Next to Rohit Sharma as India’s T20 captain is Sanju Samson: T20 World Cup dispute is sealed by Harbhajan, who wants him developed
Who ought to be the wicketkeeper for India in the Twenty20 World Cup? Rishabh Pant, Sanju Samson, Dinesh Karthik, KL Rahul, and Jitesh Sharma are the current five contenders. Even though Ishan Kishan plays a significant role for the Mumbai Indians at the top of the order, his batting position is unlikely to be the only factor taken into account.
Someone with middle-order batting skills is needed for India. Pant and Dinesh Karthik outscore the others there, who often like to bat in the top three. Jitesh has established himself as a finisher, but his poor IPL 2024 performance has hurt him.
Right now, Karthik seems to be the dark horse, while Pant and Samson seem to be the front-runners. The veteran of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru team has said that he is prepared to compete in the international tournament that will take place in the USA and the West Indies in June and July of this year for one more chance at glory.
Given that the competition will take place in an unfamiliar environment, it is quite likely that India’s 15-man roster will include two specialized keepers. It could depend on what qualities their selection committee is seeking in a keeper.
Pant has led the Delhi Capitals and shown his fitness. Pant makes perfect sense if the club management is considering a left-handed alternative. Next is the part that Karthik plays. Karthik has shown that very few finishers are better than him in the shortest format, even at the age of 38.
However, Harbhajan Singh, a former cricketer for India, feels that Samson, the captain of the Rajasthan Royals, deserves the position. Samson’s place in India’s T20I XI shouldn’t be up for argument, according to the former off-spinner. He went so far as to suggest that the player from Kerala should be trained to succeed Rohit Sharma as India’s T20I captain.
“Sanju Samson ought to be selected for the Indian T20 World Cup squad and trained to succeed Rohit as the country’s future T20 captain. “Koi shak (any questions)?” On X, Harbhajan wrote.
Samson, Pant, and Karthik at the Twenty20 World Cup
In this IPL season, Samson has been a very successful batsman and captain. In the eight games he has played this year, the right-hander has scored 314 runs at a strike average of 152.3. With 14 points from eight games this season, the Royals are dangerously close to become the first club to guarantee their spot in the playoffs.
As captain, Samson has excelled. With the weight of runs, he is head and shoulders above the others. Similar to Kishan, Samson’s batting position might work against him. He batted at No. 3 for RR and scored all those runs.
But Pant, who bats at No. 4 or No. 5, has hammered 254 runs at a 150 strike rate this season. Depending on the circumstances of the match, India’s keeper is probably going to bat at No. 5 or No. 6.
Samson has batted in that position for India in T20Is and ODIs, although Pant is a left-hander and has more experience there. Then there is Karthik, who has contributed 251 runs to the RCB this season with a strike rate of 196. But instead of looking forward, would the selectors turn their backs on DK once more? In less than two weeks, there should be an answer to the query.
