Sanju Samson, the 27-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman, has done quite well for India in the T20Is in 2022. He was considered one of the prospects for the ICC T20I World Cup 2022. However, he has failed to find a place in the squad announced for the World Cup.
Rohit Sharma, the Indian captain, had once said that Sanju Samson’s shot-making ability would be a valuable asset for the Indian team in T20I World Cup. Former Indian coach Ravi Shastri had also made similar remarks and expressed his disappointment when Sanju was not included in the squad for World Cup.
Twitter is buzzing with the trends of Sanju Samson for the World Cup and more. Many Indian cricket team fans believe that the Indian management has missed a trick by not selecting Sanju in the squad.
One question that every cricket lover is seeking answers to is why Sanju Samson is being ignored by the BCCI and the Indian team selectors. Here we have covered the possible reasons why Samson has been ignored for the moment by BCCI.
1- For Having a Left-Right Combination in the Middle
Rishabh Pant, who is yet to prove his mettle in T20I cricket, has found a place in the Indian squad for the World Cup. On the other hand, Sanju Samson, despite being consistent for India in 2022, is left out.
Many believe that Pant has been selected as the 2nd wicket-keeper batter after Dinesh Karthik in the squad due to him bringing a left-right combination for the Indian team in the middle. India’s top 7 are all right-handers except Rishabh Pant, and if Samson had been selected, India could have been quite a one-dimensional team in the T20I World Cup 2022.
2- Building Sanju Samson for the Next T20I World Cup
Samson has been recently named the captain of India A squad for the series against New Zealand. This means that the Indian cricket team management is hopeful that Sanju Samson will make an impact in the near future for the national cricket team.
Samson is only 27 years old right now and has age by his side. Dinesh Karthik probably won’t stick around till the next T20I World Cup, which will make Sanju Samson one of the top contenders for the Indian wicket-keeper batter option in the shortest format of the game.
Perhaps the Indian selectors want Samson to develop a responsible game by handing him the captaincy of the India A team. There is always that element of risk in playing Samson. His destructive style can sometimes prove to be drastic for the Indian team itself. If Samson can learn to tone done aggression at crucial moments, he can be India’s biggest asset in the future.
3- Being Clueless
Sanju Samson is a high-risk, high-reward player. On his day, he can win you matches single-handedly. He has proclaimed that he likes to play in a risky and destructive manner in T20Is because he believes that the strike rate of a batsman plays a very crucial role in a team’s success.
His approach was quite beneficial for the Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2022 as they reached the finals. Samson is someone who cannot be tied up for a long amount of time. He could have been India’s trump card at the T20I World Cup. However, the Indian selection committee has thought otherwise.
Many cricket pundits and even the fans are labelling the decision as a clueless one since Sanju has performed much better than Rishabh Pant, who has been selected as one of the wicket-keeper batters in the Indian squad for the T20I World Cup.