Former opener Gautam Gambhir has heavily criticized the Indian management for leaving Suryakumar Yadav out of the third T20I against England. Despite making his debut in the second game, Yadav was dropped for the very next match to make room for Rohit Sharma.
During a conversation with ESPN Cricinfo, Gambhir noted that he would find it deeply upsetting if he were in Suryakumar Yadav's position.
Gambhir highlighted that players often start feeling insecure about their careers once they reach 30. He brought up the cases of Sanju Samson and Manish Pandey, noting that since they weren't given a consistent opportunity, they've essentially been forgotten. In his view, the management should have given Yadav a streak of three or four matches to truly gauge his form.
Gambhir also described the move to slot Ishan Kishan at No. 3 as a major error, especially after Kishan's impressive half-century as an opener in his debut. He argued that relying on Yadav only as a last-minute injury substitute, rather than giving him a steady run of games, could negatively impact India's chances of winning the T20 World Cup.
With the series score at 2-1 in favor of England, the home side is in a must-win situation to keep their hopes alive. The fourth T20I is scheduled for Thursday at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium.