When Shubman Gill was named India’s vice-captain for the Asia Cup, many assumed Sanju Samson would be left out. Ravichandran Ashwin was among those who felt Samson would miss out and Jitesh Sharma would take the wicketkeeping role.
Why India chose Samson over Jitesh
However, India captain and head coach Suryakumar Yadav and Gautam Gambhir had other plans. Samson was in India’s playing XI for the entire tournament. He didn’t get to bat each time or at the same position, but they placed their trust in him.
The move worked well in the Asia Cup final against Pakistan, as Samson played a valuable 24-run cameo for India. 10 days later, Suryakumar has revealed the thought process that he and Gambhir had before picking Samson over Jitesh.
“Everyone thought that with Shubman and Jitesh coming into the team, Sanju might not open or even get his place. But in my mind, it never crossed my mind that he wouldn’t play. In the very first practice session, he was behind the nets, and Gautam Bhai and I discussed him. Gautam Bhai said he has done so well in the last 10-15 T20s. We valued his recent form and reliability, which is why we picked him over Jitesh,” Suryakumar said on the Vimal Kumar YouTube channel.
Sanju Samson’s new role
Suryakumar and Gambhir had an important chat with Samson. The wicketkeeper was told that he’d have to drop from opener to middle-order batter. His job was different now. He won’t get time to settle down and explode. They explained to him that impact was more important than runs; whatever the team needs, Samson has to do it.
“We just told him that his batting position might change, and he may get fewer balls, but his impact has to remain the same. We explained it to him; previously, you used to play 30-40 balls. But now you may play just 10 balls, or you may not even get a chance to bat. But, whenever he comes out to bat, he should think about how to make the most of it for the team,” Surya added.
