India secured a seven-wicket victory over Afghanistan in Sunday’s opening T20I as Sanju Samson surrendered his starting selection for just 10 runs at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.
The wicketkeeper lasted eight deliveries before mistiming a pull shot off a short delivery from Azmatullah Omarzai to deep square leg. Head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Shreyas Iyer retained the 31-year-old despite intense scrutiny surrounding his place. Fifteen-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi waits in reserve, bringing fresh top-order credentials after securing the Player of the Series award against Zimbabwe.
Pressure Mounts On Opening Position
Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar criticised the performance, with Hindustan Times publishing his commentary remarks. “Sanju Samson doesn’t help his own cause; he’s pretty inconsistent,” Manjrekar said.
Bumrah made his return to the bowling attack following intense training preparations, joining a unit that restricted the designated hosts to 156 for eight. Arshdeep Singh claimed three wickets in the innings, while Omarzai led the Afghanistan resistance with an unbeaten 64.
The fixture featured a new pre-match protocol, with a complete rendition of Vande Mataram playing for over three minutes before the national anthems. Abhishek Sharma scored 82 and Ishan Kishan added 42 to guide the chase to completion with 38 deliveries remaining.
The management must now decide whether to introduce Sooryavanshi when the three-match series resumes.
