Follow UsSanju Samson, who smashed three centuries in the space of five T20Is against Bangladesh and South Africa, has struggled to get going in the ongoing series against England.
The right-hander from Kerala has started the series with scores of 26 and 5 and has found it tough to get going against England’s tearaway quicks, especially his Rajasthan Royals teammate Jofra Archer.
The right-arm paceman has targetted Samson with short deliveries and has gotten him out twice from a similar length. Almost 50 percent of the deliveries that Samson has faced in this series have been either back of a length or short.
England’s simple game plan has forced Samson to opt for special training ahead of the third T20I in Rajkot on January 28 (Tuesday).
Ahead of the fixture, the opener was seen working closely with Indian batting coach Sitanshu Kotak and throwdown specialists, reported the Press Trust of India (PTI).
Samson worked with them for almost 45 minutes, during which time he was constantly fed short deliveries on a cemented pitch. The throwdown specialists used plastic balls to generate higher pace, with Samson playing those pull, hook, and ramp shots.
Both Kotak and Samson were constantly seen talking to each other. Once he was done, Samson moved to the main practice pitches, once again focusing on short deliveries.
Abhishek Sharma and Samson, who are being used as openers in the England series, have been under constant pressure, with Yashasvi Jaiswal waiting in the wings. Abhishek smashed 79 off 34 in the first T20I but got out for 12 off 6 in Chennai.