If you are going to play Sanju Samson at No. 5 or No. 6, play Rinku Singh instead – Abhishek Nayar

Kolkata Knight Riders assistant coach Abhishek Nayar feels it is better to play Rinku Singh in the lower middle order than Sanju Samson. Nayar reckons if Sanju Samson is to be played, then he should bat at one down in the batting order otherwise he shouldn’t be included at all in the final XI.

Samson was dismissed after scoring only 13 runs in the fifth T20I against West Indies and once again could not convert his start into a substantial score. The right-hander could not grab his chance in the T20I series as he could only manage 32 runs in three innings at an average of 10.67 and a strike rate of 114.29.

Sanju has all the talent and ability, which he has shown over the years in the IPL but he hasn’t been consistent enough at the International level yet, especially in T20Is. Samson has scored 333 runs in 22 T20I matches at an average of 18.5 and a strike rate of 131.62.

On the other hand, Rinku Singh had a terrific run in IPL 2023, scoring 474 runs in 14 matches at an average of 59.25 and a strike rate of 149.53. The southpaw scored a total of four fifties in the season and really impressed while batting in the middle order for KKR.

“I believe if you want to utilise Sanju Samson more, bat him at No. 3 because that is his number. He is used to that and he is successful there, or else don’t play him,” said Nayar on JioCinema.

“If you are going to play him at No. 5 or No. 6, play Rinku Singh instead. If you play Samson in the top three, you will get more out of him because he plays shots in the powerplay and then plays the spinners. So I believe it is not the right place but he will get opportunities,” said the former India batter.

Both Sanju Samson and Rinku Singh are part of the T20I squad for the three-match series against Ireland.