Team India are currently searching for a proper combination of their playing XI. Recently, they handed the debut T20 cap to the kid, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who replaced Sanju Samson in the series against England before Sanju replaced him in the fifth and final T20I against England on Saturday. Reacting to the change, former India batter Wasim Jaffer said that Team India handed the player an early debut by getting carried away by the hype around him due to IPL.

“I think we rushed Vaibhav’s inclusion. There was a lot of media hype around him, and the public was very emotional about seeing him play. Otherwise, I had already said that India should have continued with Sanju Samson. They shouldn’t have changed that combination. Vaibhav had to wait for his opportunity, and when that opportunity came, he could have taken it. He’s still very young, and he can learn a lot just by being around the team and watching cricket from the outside,” said Jaffer in a video on his YouTube channel.

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“It felt like we got carried away by the media hype. Every time Vaibhav didn’t play, there was a lot of discussion about it. I just thought he should have been made to wait. If you were absolutely convinced that Sanju wasn’t in good form or wasn’t playing well, then you could have taken that decision. But eventually, it felt like you rushed Vaibhav into the team,” he further added.

However, India will play a three-match series against Zimbabwe in their next T20I assignment. Interestingly, Samson is not a part of the squad, while Sooryavanshi has been added as well. Jaffer stated that Sanju Samson should have been given more chances.

“Then, after giving him three matches (to Sooryavanshi), you brought Sanju back. Sanju himself played only one match, and now he’s been left out of the Zimbabwe tour. Dropping him from the Zimbabwe tour also seemed a bit strange to me because I’m sure he would have wanted to play. As it is, he only plays one format for India. He should be given regular opportunities. I’m sure Sanju Samson will be part of the plans for the next World Cup because he’s a match-winner. The way things unfolded really surprised me,” Wasim Jaffer concluded.