India T20 captain Shreyas Iyer has said that young batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi will have to wait for his opportunities in the playing XI, as openers Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson are performing consistently. Iyer made these comments ahead of India's five-match T20I series against New Zealand. Sooryavanshi has featured in only eight of India's 21 T20I matches since being selected for the England and Ireland tour earlier this year. With Abhishek and Samson playing key roles in India's T20 World Cup title defence, the team is keen to maintain its successful opening combination. Iyer said Sooryavanshi is young and has plenty of time to prove himself at the international level. He also stressed the importance of keeping the youngster positive within the team environment.
"It's important that a talent like him (Sooryavanshi) should always be happy around the dressing room," Iyer said. "He is very young, he has more years to get opportunities. It's not like he can walk in right now, because our openers are scoring consistently, and they have won the World Cup," he added. "Next time, whenever he comes in these conditions, he will be very well-prepared. And he can also instruct the other team members, whoever comes here for the first time," Iyer said.
India arrive in New Zealand after a busy schedule involving series against Afghanistan and the West Indies, along with the Asian Games. Iyer said the team is focused on adapting quickly to the conditions and finding ways to win. India will look to start the series strongly, while Sooryavanshi will aim to learn from the experience and wait for his opportunity as Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson continue to lead the batting at the top.