Wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson had to warm the bench for the first two T20Is before the Rajasthan Royals (RR) captain returned to the Indian XI for the third and final encounter against Afghanistan. Samson was overlooked by the Indian think tank for the first two T20Is in which youngster Jitesh Sharma was roped in as India’s wicketkeeper. With Jitesh scoring a duck in the previous encounter, Samson was added to the playing XI for the dead rubber at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
After Virat Kohli recorded his first-ever golden duck, Samson also emulated the former India skipper as the wicketkeeper-batter failed to open his account on return. Samson mistimed his pull shot to gift his wicket away to Fareed Ahmad on the first ball. India batters Yashasvi Jaiswal (4), Kohli (0), Shivam Dube (1) and Samson (0) had a forgetful day at the office as India were reduced to 22-4 in 4.3 overs. However, skipper Rohit Sharma played a record-breaking knock of 121 while Rinku Singh smashed 69 to help India post 212-4 in 20 overs. Samson, who has struggled to retain his place in the Indian squad, was called out by Team India fans for his batting no-show against Afghanistan in the 3rd T20I.
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Samson faces heat from upset Team India fans
Earlier, Samson squandered his chances to push his case for a spot in the World Cup squad. Making a return to the Indian squad in the South Africa series, Samson slammed his maiden century to raise his stocks. Samson smashed 108 to help India defeat the Proteas by 78 runs at Boland Park. The premier batter then returned to the Indian T20I for the first time after the Ireland series as he was picked for the Afghanistan T20Is.
What’s next for Samson?
The Kerala star was one of the two wicketkeepers named in the T20I squad for the Afghanistan series. The explosive batter made his international debut back in 2015. However, Samson has only played 16 T20Is and 25 One Day Internationals (ODIs) for India. Following an unimpressive outing in the final T20I, the 29-year-old will hope to bounce back by leading the batting charge of the RR franchise in the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Samson vs Jitesh
The Afghanistan series was India’s final T20I assignment before the T20 World Cup. India hammered Afghanistan in the series opener by 6 wickets. Keeping wickets for India, Jitesh played a handy knock of 31 off 20 balls for the hosts. Pitted against Samson in the three-match series, Jitesh was handed a two-ball duck in the 2nd T20I that India won by 6 wickets. Since his debut against Nepal last year, the 30-year-old has played 9 T20Is for India.
Hasibur Rahaman is a passionate sports journalist. He covers everything from cricket to field hockey, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis of sporting events, both within India and on the international stage.
