IND vs SL 2021: "He's been batting really well" - Suryakumar Yadav defends Manish Pandey's selection

Suryakumar Yadav has come to the defense of fellow middle-order batsman Manish Pandey over the latter's dismal return in the three-match ODI series against Sri Lanka. Yadav said Pandey had batted 'really well' in the tour before pointing to his unlucky run-out in the previous ODI.

India lost the final ODI by three wickets. Before the game they had handed over five debut caps and made a total of six changes, raising questions on why Manish Pandey wasn't one of the players to sit out despite his form.

"That was completely the team management's call, I can't get into that decision. But yes, he's been batting really well as we saw in the practice games, we played intra-squad games also. And last game, you all must have seen it it was an unfortunate dismissal, he was batting really well at that time as well. So that must have been the reason but as I said, this isn't my call," Suryakumar Yadav said in the post-match press conference.

Hope people don't quote this as 'opportunity missed' by Manish Pandey. This is just sheer bad luck! #SLvIND pic.twitter.com/p8qbhGYtsw

— Rahul Pandey (@sportstoryguy) July 20, 2021

Although Manish Pandey has been a victim of some haphazard selection choices in the past, he'll only have himself to blame for not getting any more opportunities soon. Apart from the runout, the 31-year-old had two brilliant chances to score runs but couldn't convert his starts and ended the series with just 74 runs at an average of 24.67.

Will Manish Pandey play in the T20I series?

C. H. A. M. P. I. O. N. S 🏆#TeamIndia #SLvIND pic.twitter.com/N9lfQDCRsG

— BCCI (@BCCI) July 23, 2021

Although a Rahul Dravid reprieve is possible, it looks unlikely that Manish Pandey will get any more game time on this tour.

Youngsters like Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Nitish Rana, Devdutt Padikkal and Ruturaj Gaikwad are waiting in the wings to capture top-order spots and Manish Pandey hasn't been that good in T20Is of late either.

It will take some injury concerns or last-minute changes for the Karnataka batsman to get a look in for the series. The first T20I will be played on Sunday, July 25.