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"Very Unfair": 1983 WC winner slams Gambhir and co. for injustice towards Sanju Samson

Shreyasi

Sanju Samson while representing India [Source: X/@MDRaju_Live]Sanju Samson while representing India [Source: X/@MDRaju_Live]

India’s squad for the upcoming ODI series against Australia sparked fresh debate as BCCI announced Shubman Gill as the new ODI captain of Indian cricket team. Dhruv Jurel’s addition to the squad as the backup wicketkeeper overlooking Sanu Samson was another point of discussion.

Former selector slams BCCI for being 'unfair' to Samson

Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer and national selector Kris Srikkanth criticised BCCI for being unfair to Sanju. According to him Sanju Samson was ahead in the pecking order following his last ODI century. On his YouTube channel, Srikkanth explained,

“Again, very unfair. Sanju should have been there, considering he scored a century in his last ODI. So, every day, the reason for change keeps shifting for each individual. One day you make him bat at 5, then another day you make him open."

Sanju Samson scored a century in his last ODI in 2023 in the series decider match against South Africa. Since then, he has not been part of India’s ODI squad. In the upcoming three-match ODI series against Australia, Sanju Samson was expected to be picked up as back-up. However, despite the absence of unfit Rishabh Pant, Samson missed the opportunity to Dhruv Jurel.

Curious case of Samson's batting order

While speaking to reporters in Ahmedabad, Ajit Agarkar explained that Samson wasn't picked as he is a top-order batter. But interestingly the team management made Samson bat down the order in the recently concluded Asia Cup 2025. So far, Sanju Samson has accumulated 347 runs in 11 innings predominantly batting down the order. His average of 57.83 with three half-centuries speak of his consistent despite batting at different batting positions.

“Sometimes you send him at 7 or 8. How did Dhruv Jurel suddenly come in? Sanju may or may not feature in the 11, but he has to be given the first right of refusal”, Kris Srikkanth mentioned.

While speaking of the same, Srikkanth opined that this kind of selection procedure confuses the players too. He explained that the “chopping and changing all the time” will “dent the confidence of the players”.

"By making such selections constantly, they are confusing the players themselves. Even though we aren't sure every day what the selection will be. Suddenly, Yashasvi Jaiswal is there, and then the next minute he won't be there," added Srikkanth.

India's ODI squad for Australia series

Shubman Gill (captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (vc), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (wk), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal.