Former Indian spinner Pragyan Ojha has compared the youngsters like Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan to the “pre-paid sim cards”, saying they need to become “postpaid sim cards” by performing consistently to stake their claim for a place in the India cricket team.
He further pointed out that only players like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma can afford to have lean patches at the highest level, but the youngsters can’t afford, they must perform consistently to stake their claim or cement their place in the Indian cricket team.
His comments came after Sanju Samson’s brilliant century for the Rajasthan Royals in their Indian Premier League (IPL 2021) opener against Punjab Kings earlier this week.
However, RR’s skipper failed to replicate the show in their second game against Delhi Capitals but managed to lead the side to a 3-wicket win over Rishabh Pant-led DC on Thursday (April 15) in Mumbai.
Ojha told Sports Today: “When you talk about Sanju Samson, there is one thing. When he came into this side, there was no Rishabh Pant, there was no Ishan Kishan.”
He further explained, “In this present Indian team, consider this interesting story Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma are like post-paid sim cards. They can push themselves for a bit more time without paying the bills. But quite a few youngsters are like pre-paid sim cards.”
Ojha signed off by saying, “It has to be renewed in the given time otherwise the sim is dead. All these youngsters should understand they are not post-paid sim cards. They are pre-paid sim cards, to become postpaid, they have to perform consistently.”
(With India Today Inputs)
