Sanju Samson says Jasprit Bumrah has no replacement after India lose fourth T20I to West Indies

Samson calls Bumrah a once-in-a-generation bowler as India fall 24 runs short in Hyderabad

India wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson believes Jasprit Bumrah is irreplaceable, but he is confident the team has young bowlers who can improve with more opportunities after India lost the fourth T20I against the West Indies by 24 runs at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Wednesday.

With Bumrah rested for the series after participating in the Asian Games as the BCCI looks to manage the workload of its star fast bowler, India’s attack has faced a tough challenge on batting-friendly pitches.

Backing for young pacers

Samson said Bumrah’s quality makes him a special player, but pointed to the progress of Arshdeep Singh and Prince Yadav.

"There is no replacement for Jasprit Bumrah. He is a once-in-a-generation kind of bowler, and we are very lucky to have him. But we have had some really good talent coming along also; Arshdeep (Singh) has been doing a great job, and also the way Prince Yadav has bowled in the last few games is very impressive. I feel we have some really good talent. The more we play them, the more we back them, the better they will become," Samson said after the defeat.

Arshdeep suffered a blow to his left arm while batting towards the end of India’s innings. Samson said the team hoped the pacer would recover in time for the fifth T20I on Saturday.

"Arshdeep is putting ice on his shoulder," Samson said. "Hopefully he recovers soon."

Credit for Shai Hope

West Indies captain Shai Hope has been in excellent form during the series. He has scored two centuries and a half-century in the four T20Is, after also hitting two centuries in the preceding ODI series.

Samson said Hope deserved credit for the way he had handled the Indian bowling attack.

"He (Hope) is playing really well; we need to respect what he has been doing. He has been playing some really good cricketing shots, not taking that much risk, so he is respecting the bowlers as well. We need to give the credit to him for the way he is batting, and we are definitely switched on how to respond to him every game," he added.

Defence of top order

India’s top order also came under focus after Abhishek Sharma scored 29 off 24 balls in the fourth T20I. Samson backed both Abhishek and Ishan Kishan, saying one difficult outing should not be a cause for concern.

Abhishek had scored 69 in the previous match, while Kishan has been among India’s consistent run-scorers.

"Ishan (Kishan) and Abhishek Sharma are the world's best top two batters; I think you cannot ask anything more out of them, one game is okay. (Abhishek) just scored a really good 70 (69) in the last game and Ishan is consistently scoring a lot of runs, so one game is totally fine," Samson said.