Indian wicket-keeper batsman Sanju Samson has been ruled out of the 2nd T20 international to be played at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on January 05. Samson injured his knee while fielding at the third-man boundary during the 1st T20 match. At that time, it seemed Samson was okay but now it has come to light that Samson will not take part in the 2nd T20 match against Sri Lanka.
According to a BCCI source, Samson has been asked to stay back in Mumbai where he will undergo some scans. The scans will measure the extent of the injury he sustained during the 1st T20 match.
The BCCI has announced Vidarbha batsman Jitesh Sharma as Samson’s replacement in the squad. Jitesh will also be a backup wicketkeeper option for Ishan Kishan for the remainder of the T20 series.
While it seems highly unlikely that Jitesh Sharma will not be included straightaway into the playing XI, it seems likely that Rahul Tripathi might receive his T20 cap tomorrow. He has been traveling with the Indian squad for a while now but has not played a single game yet. Tomorrow might just be his day!
India defeated Sri Lanka in the first T20I played at the Wankhede by a narrow margin of 2 runs. India currently leads the 3-match series 1-0.