Such intricate is the IPL mesh that camaraderie and rivalry often melt into one another and it is very difficult to separate one from the other.

Take the case of Sanju Samson and Yashasvi Jaiswal. Teammates at Rajasthan Royals, the two will also enjoy a subtle rivalry.

Samson, the Royals’ captain, has earned a place in India’s T20 set-up after years of toil. As a keeper-opener, he has played some fine innings, but is yet to cement his place. Jaiswal, who too is an opener, has been improving every season. Yet, the left-hander has not managed to break into India’s white-ball plans.

The one complaint some of Samson’s critics used to have about him was his tendency to throw his wicket away with a needless shot even when he was well set. The Royals’ management, however, viewed that as putting the team’s interest first instead of worrying about his individual score.

To be fair to the Kerala batter, he has been putting a little more price on his wicket, which his numbers in IPL 2024 (531 runs, averaging 48.27 with a strike rate of 153.46) reflect.

Although the Royals had lost in Qualifier II last year to Sunrisers Hyderabad, IPL 2024 was Samson’s best as a batter as he was a lot more consistent. Precisely, the confidence he gained from the previous edition of the IPL drove him to hammer two centuries and flaunt a strike rate of 194.59 in the four-match T20I series in South Africa.

Lately, though, the Royals skipper hasn’t been in the best of form. He also underwent surgery on his right index finger. But one believes that shouldn’t affect his participation in this IPL. Given the intense competition for a place in India’s T20I squad, a fall in numbers may well affect Samson’s selection prospects in next year’s T20 World Cup, something he should be careful about.

To speak about Jaiswal, the aggression with which he has batted in home Tests suggests he should be an automatic choice in India’s limited-overs teams. But that hasn’t been the case for the young left-hander.

In terms of ODI cricket, Jaiswal has featured in just one game so far — the Nagpur ODI versus England last month. In T20Is, in 23 appearances so far, Jaiswal has five fifties and a ton, averaging 36.15 and striking at 164.31. The numbers are indeed impressive, but his last T20I was against Sri Lanka in Pallekele back in July.

Precisely, Jaiswal is unlucky as he finds himself in a situation where youngsters like Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma have taken big-hitting to another level altogether. Not that Jaiswal isn’t capable of doing so, but at present, to return to the Indian squad, the 23-year-old may have to outdo himself as well as his rivals. For starters, it’s Samson who is in his way.

“It’s tough not just for Jaiswal or any one player. It’s tough for everyone. Eventually, it will be about runs and the quality of those runs, like which opposition you got the runs against, the conditions and under what stakes. These are just as important,” was the advice for Jaiswal from Zubin Bharucha, the Royals’ high-performance director.