India’s wicketkeeper-batter, Sanju Samson, attracted attention when the BCCI excluded him from the T20I squad for the Australia series, mirroring his absence from the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023. Despite the snub, Samson, avoiding controversy, expressed gratitude for his current standing, acknowledging that his journey exceeded his initial expectations.
In a conversation with Dhanya Varma on her YouTube channel, Samson, dubbed the “unluckiest cricketer,” recounted a post-IPL 2023 discussion with India captain Rohit Sharma. Sharma, offering support, acknowledged Samson’s IPL performance while playfully noting his penchant for hitting sixes against Mumbai Indians.
“People call me the unluckiest cricketer, but where I’ve reached currently, it’s much more than what I thought I could. Rohit Sharma was the first or second person who came to me and talked. He told me ‘Hey Sanju, wassup. You performed well in the IPL, but hit too many sixes against Mumbai Indians. You bat really well’. I had great support from him,” Samson said.
Despite a lack of consistency in the IPL 2023, where he amassed 362 runs in 14 matches, Samson’s conversation with Sharma reflected positive encouragement. However, injuries and a subsequent omission from the Asian Games 2023 squad raised doubts about his future in the national setup, which were further solidified by his exclusion from the T20I series against Australia.
With a T20I average of 19.68 from 21 innings, including one half-century, Samson’s last appearance was against Ireland in August 2023. His recent domestic outing in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2023 saw him score 30 runs against Saurashtra, contributing to Kerala’s three-wicket win in a low-scoring encounter led by Abdul Basith’s half-century.
