Former Team India captain Kris Srikkanth slammed head coach Gautam Gambhir for his treatment of Sanju Samson in the T20I side. Srikkanth said that Samson has been unfairly shuffled around the batting order despite performing well as an opener, adding that the team management may even send him at No. 11.
Samson had established himself as a dependable T20I opener between July 2024 and the start of the Asia Cup. However, his role changed during the tournament in the UAE, where he was pushed out of the opening slot to accommodate Shubman Gill’s return.
Sanju Samson was then shuffled through the middle order without a fixed position, batting at No. 5 in three matches and remaining unused in another despite India losing six wickets.
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The Guy Who’s Most Unlucky Is Sanju Samson – Kris Srikkanth
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Kris Srikkanth called Sanju Samson “the unluckiest player.” The former India captain said that while Samson had excelled as an opener with multiple centuries, he has no choice but to accept the team’s decisions and perform wherever he’s asked to bat.
“The guy who’s most unlucky is Sanju Samson. He was scoring centuries as an opener. But now they send him everywhere — from No. 3 to No. 8. If given an opportunity, they may send him at No. 11 also! A person like Sanju will naturally feel bad after doing so well at the top, but he has no option but to be tight-lipped and bat wherever the team asks him to,” Srikkanth said in his YouTube channel.
The First Wicketkeeper for the T20 World Cup – Kris Srikkanth
Srikkanth stated that Sanju Samson did well while batting in the middle order. He added that Samson is India’s first-choice wicketkeeper for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
“The only good thing is he did well at No. 5 in the Asia Cup. It’s a good sign because Sanju is now the automatic choice as the first wicketkeeper for the T20 World Cup,” he said.
Sanju Samson scored three centuries in 13 innings at an average of 37 and a strike rate of 183 as an opener alongside Abhishek Sharma. However, his numbers dipped after being moved down the order during the Asia Cup.
He scored 132 runs in seven matches at an average of 33 and a strike rate below 125. Samson also played a valuable knock of 24 off 21 balls to guide India to a tense last-over victory against Pakistan in the final.
More or Less the One for the T20 World Cup – Kris Srikkanth
Kris Srikkanth stated that India’s playing XI for the T20 World Cup next year would be similar to the one that featured in the first T20I against Australia in Canberra. He mentioned that Hardik Pandya would likely replace Harshit Rana, while the rest of the lineup would stay the same.
“The 11 that played today is more or less the one for the T20 World Cup. Hardik Pandya will come into the 11 for Harshit Rana. That’ll be the 11 for the World Cup. Arshdeep might have to miss out again because of the combination, as we have to play three spinners,” said Srikkanth (via the aforementioned source).
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