Sanju Samson and Suryakumar Yadav are in a virtual fight for a place in the upcoming Asia Cup and the World Cup 2023 with selection spots narrowed down. The two players were on the Indian flight for the Caribbean tour and got their chances in the middle order in India's trial-and-tested approach. The Asia Cup is less than 20 days away and the World Cup is less than two months away. But who is having an edge over the other in the 50-over format?
Injury issues to KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer have opened the gates for the likes of Sanju Samson and Suryakumar Yadav to get their feet into the format. It may not be unfair to say that Samson has got way fewer chances than Suryakumar has got but it is understood the latter is backed more due to his prowess in T20Is. But what does the ODI stats say regarding these two?
Sanju Samson outclass Suryakumar on average
Talking about the ODI average, Sanju Samson is placed above Suryakumar. The Kerala-born cricketer Samson has played 13 matches, scoring 390 runs at an average of 55.71. On the flip, the Mumbai star Suryakumar has featured in double-26 matches, making 511 runs at an average of 24.33. But this is also due to Samson remaining unbeaten more times than his compatriot in the format. Samson scored career a highlight unbeaten 86 against South Africa, nearly taking India home. His other unbeaten scores read 6*, 43*, 30* and 2*.
Suryakumar on the other hand has the best score of 64 to his name. The T20I star has three unbeaten knocks - 31*, 34* and 34* in his career.
Who has batted where most often?
The team has made the two batters bat in the middle order most often. In his short ODI career, Samson has batted five times (his most) at number five, while four of his 12 ODI innings have come at six. Samson's 86* came at number 6. Suryakumar has played the most at five with 11 innings out of 24 in the format. Suryakumar's 64-run knock came in at 5.
How many times both have batted after 30 overs
As Suryakumar is being tried to play the finisher role in ODIs, his numbers are not great there. He has walked out to bat at the end of 30 overs 13 times in his career but has added only 189 runs at an average of 15.75 and a strike rate of 112.50. On the other hand, Samson has batted in the same phase eight times, where he has made 207 runs at a 41.40 average and a strike rate of 111.89. Here Samson's 86* run knock possibly helped him take a big lead.
Who has the edge?
The stats might point the pendulum is in favour of Samson and Suryakumar's numbers look small. The management has maintained that they want to give chances to the players ahead of the World Cup so that the picture becomes clear for the World Cup. Suryakumar has been backed by many for his swashbuckling approach in T20Is, which has taken longer to translate into ODIs. Samson's positive approach has also been a highlight but does the management rate him over Suryakumar is a thing the future holds
