India’s T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav acknowledged that his team has a healthy headache of having a lot of players competing for the same spot.
Addressing the media after India’s 3-1 series win over South Africa, Suryakumar said he was living in the moment and would think about possible team combinations later.
Notably, Sanju Samson’s incredible run of form at the top of the batting order has sparked questions on what the Indian team's combination will be once the likes of Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal return to the T20I fold.
Samson has hit three hundreds from his last five T20I appearances. The wicketkeeper-batter slammed two centuries in the four-match series against South Africa.
Suryakumar spoke about the issue, saying that there was a lot of time left to mull over the combinations before the marquee tournaments like the T20 World Cup, slated to take place in 2026.
"Even before the World Cup, we played a few T20 tournaments and we spoke about what type of cricket we want to play going forward. We play for different franchises in the IPL but when we come together, I think we wanted to do the same thing what we do for our franchise," Suryakumar told reporters.
"I have not thought about that far away. I like to live in the moment, enjoying the series win right now. When we sit down with the coaches, it will be difficult but it is a good headache to have. If you have 20-25 people and you have to make a team of 10-15 players, it is going to be a challenge, but thankfully I have the BCCI and the selectors for that headache," he further added.
Besides Samson (109* off 56 balls), Tilak Varma put on a show with the bat in the fourth T20I against South Africa. The southpaw slammed a 41-ball ton and returned with 120* off 47 balls to propel India to a mammoth 283/1 in 20 overs.
In reply, the Proteas innings folded for 148 in 18.2 overs. It was a listless batting display as no one managed to touch the 50-run mark.
Arshdeep Singh starred with the ball for India, claiming three wickets by conceding 20 runs in his three overs. Axar Patel and Varun Chakaravarthy picked up two scalps each while Hardik Pandya, Ravi Bishnoi and Ramandeep Singh returned with wicket apiece.
India’s next T20I series is scheduled against England at home early next year.
