Sanju Samson is one of the most loved players in the Indian cricket team that is in New Zealand for the ongoing white-ball series. He did not play the T20I games, wherein the Men in Blue registered a 65-run over the Kiwis to walk away with the series win, by a 1-0 margin.
The 28-year-old’s exclusion has left cricket fans frustrated and shocked as many expected the Rajasthan Royals skipper to play. It led to fans criticizing the team management on social media as well. Veteran Indian wicket-keeper Dinesh Karthik also wanted to see Sanju Samson get an opportunity against the Black Caps.
Speaking on Cricbuzz, Karthik said, “The only player India can replace right now is Suryakumar Yadav. They may want to give him a break and probably bring him in for the ODIs. The rest of them have just come in, and to give them one game is unfair to everybody.”
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He added, “India can bring in (Sanju) Samson as he will be well-suited to the conditions because he likes playing fast bowling and is a good player of short-pitched bowling. I would love to see Sanju Samson instead of Suryakumar Yadav.”
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri was vocal, too, claiming that Sanju Samson should be given a long run in the Indian T20 team. Rohit Sharma had also backed the Kerala-based batter to do well before T20 World Cup 2022. However, a lack of opportunities saw Samson miss out on the ICC event.
While many fans have called out BCCI’s decision as a bad one, the Indian cricket board is not wrong! Firstly, he failed miserably in his first few matches for the national team. Sanju Samson has been rightly criticized for not grabbing opportunities at the highest level. He has often thrown his wicket away by playing unnecessary rash shots, with many experts tagging Samson to be a ‘good only in IPL’ player.
However, the 28-year-old has overcome that inconsistent phase and has come a long way in the recent past. Since the start of 2022, Samson has been one of the most consistent players with the bat. He fared well in IPL and later captained the India A team to a stellar whitewash series win over New Zealand.
It is also worth noting that Samson has not even received half the number of chances compared to Rishabh Pant in the shortest format of the game. So, it would be a fair call by the fans as well as the batter to stake a claim for a spot in the Indian XI, given his form and ability to bat anywhere across the top order.
The Kerala-based star is currently a part of the Indian ODI team for the 3-match series against New Zealand. With most of the senior stars like KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma rested for the tour. It remains interesting to see if Sanju Samson gets his opportunity in One Day games.
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Smit is a sports writer at Gutshot Magazine. After completing his Bachelor’s in Mass Media, and a Master’s degree in Sports Management, this sports fanatic uses articles as a tool to express his opinions. Bring up cricket or football and you will find this usually quiet guy speak for hours! He also co-heads the official supporters club of Chelsea FC in Mumbai, wherein he hosts screenings, football meets and other such events.
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