'We needed to...': Shreyas Iyer breaks silence on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's exclusion

Defending T20 World Champions India endured another series loss in their ongoing tour of the UK. The Men in Blue suffered a 56-run loss in the fifth and final T20I on Saturday, July 11 to endure a 0-4 loss against the Three Lions. Despite the loss, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's exclusion became one of the major talking points, as he was rested from the fifth T20I.

Why was Vaibhav dropped in the fifth T20I vs England?

Vaibhav made his T20I debut in the second T20I against England, replacing Sanju Samson from the lineup. However, in the fifth game, Sanju made a comeback and Vaibhav was rested but no clarity was given from skipper Shreyas Iyer at the toss.

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Notably, on being asked about Vaibhav's absence from the playing XI at the post-game press conference, captain Shreyas Iyer tried to drop a logical explanation behind the decision. The PBKS skipper revealed that Vaibhabv's inclusion had left India with six left-handed batters in the playing XI. To add a little bit of variety to the batting department, Sanju was brought back.

"We needed to try the best combination that would be perfect in these conditions, And we also wanted a right-hander to go on with Abhishek (Sharma). So that was one of the major reasons," said Iyer.

“I was the only one out of all the left-handers who’s a right-hander. So we wanted to try a different combination, which would be suitable for this particular game. And he’s a gun batsman. He has won so many series for us in the past," added Iyer.

How Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has fared in T20Is vs England?

The 15-year-old batting sensation, Vaibhav had a tough start to his international career, as he failed to create any impact with the bat despite getting quick starts in every inning he played against the Three Lions. In three innings, the star left-handed opener managed to amass 42 runs at an average of 14.00.

Despite not scoring any big score, Vaibhav managed to showcase his potential at the big stage by hitting a total of five sixes across three games. However, His weakness against quality pace bowling and back-of-length deliveries became a key highlight of the five-game series.

It will be interesting to watch if Vaibhav can make a strong comeback after an underwhelming show against England. The 15-year-old opener will don the Indian jersey again in the upcoming T20I series against Zimbabwe.