‘Iyer ahead of Samson, what a joke! Just cheap politics’: Hardik, Laxman lambasted over team selection for 2nd T20I

Sanju Samson was expected to make a return to the Indian side for the second T20I match against New Zealand in Mount Maunganui on Sunday. Lack of opportunities saw Samson miss out on the Asia Cup tournament and the T20 World Cup, but with selectors recalling him for the New Zealand tour, with India aiming to make a fresh start after the disappointment in Australia, it was expected that he would get a chance in the very first match. But his exclusion from the playing XI left fans infuriated at captain Hardik Pandya and stand-in coach VVS Laxman. (India vs. New Zealand 2nd T20 Live Score)

Samson was back for a spot in India’s World Cup back in April, before the start of the IPL, when the team was playing their home series. Regular skipper Rohit Sharma was impressed with Samson’s batting ability. But the youngster was offered limited opportunities post IPL which eventually left him out of the Asia Cup and T20 World Cup teams.

Samson was however recalled for the New Zealand tour with fans expecting his return to the playing XI. But the wait continued as Hardik picked Shreyas Iyer and Deepak Hooda as middle-order batters and Rishabh Pant as the primary wicketkeeper. The call left fans frustrated and here are some of the tweets…

“To get a game, a proper 20-over game is exciting. We still need to assess the conditions and see how the wicket is behaving. If the wicket doesn’t help you, and you try playing shots and lose wickets, and it doesn’t rain, you might be in a difficult position. We’ll assess the situation, and if the rain comes, we’ll reassess,” Hardik said after losing the toss. India was subsequently put to bat first where they scored 50 for one before rain stopped play in the seventh over.

Teams: India (Playing XI): Ishan Kishan, Rishabh Pant(w), Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Hardik Pandya(c), Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal

New Zealand (Playing XI): Finn Allen, Devon Conway(w), Kane Williamson(c), Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Ish Sodhi, Tim Southee, Adam Milne, Lockie Ferguson