‘Every player passes through this phase’ - Shikhar Dhawan on Sanju Samson’s lack of match time

After a 1-0 win in a rain-marred three-match T20I series against New Zealand, India are now gearing up for the three ODIs, the first of which will be played at the Eden Park, Auckland on Friday, November 25.

The visitors will be led by Shikhar Dhawan in absence of a host of senior players on the tour, and the captain was asked how the management communicates with a player like Sanju Samson, who hasn’t been getting regular chances in the playing XI despite being with the team for a long time.

Dhawan stated that every player comes across a similar phase in his career, and that the communication carries great importance in keeping the individual and the team in a good stead.

Samson, who made his international debut in 2015, has represented India in just 10 ODIs and 16 T20Is till date.

"Mostly, every player passes through this phase,” Dhawan said on Thursday. “It is good for the team in a sense to know that there are so many good players in the side. The key in such cases is the communication, whether it's from the coach or the captain.

"If that communication is there, the player has clarity about why he is not playing and the reasoning behind it, because there can be so many reasons behind it.

"So when that clarity and transparency is there, even when an individual feels down or is sad, which is very, very natural, he also understands it's for a bigger cause, for the larger benefit of the team."

Dhawan, who himself got a long run into the team only with a stellar run of consistent scores in 2013, despite having made his India debut in an ODI against Australia three years earlier, added that he gives his own example to the younger players if he feels the need.

"Sometimes I give my own example to them (on how hard he had to wait to establish himself in the Indian team), sometimes I don't give that. That depends on if the boys ask, I tell them," said Dhawan.

India’s last ODI assignment was the three-match home series against South Africa last month, which they won 2-1 under Dhawan.