India, Sept. 14 -- Sanju Samson had already found two boundaries, and India were hardly under pressure. Chasing 157 against Afghanistan in Delhi, there was time for the opener to settle into an innings that could strengthen his hold on a position that has suddenly become fiercely contested. Instead, eight balls into his comeback, Samson attempted to pull Azmatullah Omarzai and found the fielder in the deep. Ten runs, another start gone, and another opportunity left incomplete.

On most nights, it would have been a relatively insignificant dismissal in a chase India eventually completed with seven wickets and 38 balls to spare. Abhishek Sharma's brutal 82 off 32 balls made sure of that, while Ishan Kishan contributed 42. For Samson, howeve...