Going by Virat Kohli's habit of making changes, Manish Pandey might play ahead of Sanju Samson in AUS vs IND 3rd T20I: Virender Sehwag

Team India has already won the ongoing three-match T20I series against Australia by winning the opening two games. It has been a very good show from the visitors after losing the ODI series. Rather they have won last three matches on the tour including the final One-Day International played in Canberra. Come the T20Is, the Men in Blue continued to dominate the Aussies and will be looking to whitewash them for the second time at home.

Ideally, Team India doesn’t need to make any changes to their playing XI. But former India cricketer Virender Sehwag reckons the team will definitely make a couple of changes going by skipper Virat Kohli‘s habit of altering the XI. He thinks that Manish Pandey, who is probably the only player to not get a proper hit in the middle in last five white-ball matches so far, will get a chance in the dead rubber.

Sehwag felt that Sanju Samson looks like the only candidate to be left out which is unfortunate but that is what will happen according to him. “I don’t think there is a need to make forced changes. But they may want to play Manish Pandey if he is fit, but for whom will they play him.

“I can see only one candidate, Sanju Samson has had two games and he has not scored runs. So, Virat Kohli has the habit of making changes after two games, so it is possible he could be the one,” he said during the discussion on Sony Ten Network ahead of the third T20I.

Manish Pandey was part of 1st T20I

Interestingly, Manish Pandey was part of the playing XI in the first T20I which India won. But he was replaced by Shreyas Iyer in the second game after he suffered an elbow niggle. It remains to be seen if he gets fit in time and most importantly, if he is included in the XI. However, former cricketer Mohammad Kaif feels that Samson shouldn’t be left out from the side now and India should persist with him.

“According to me, we have won the series. He has got two innings and in the first T20I, Sanju Samson was looking good. It felt like he could score runs. And he has the X-factor, he has the ability to hit sixes. Yes, he is frittering away his chances. He is new and will get more chances although he has not grasped his chances, like Natarajan has done. That has not happened with Sanju Samson but I feel he should get more chance,” Kaif said.