Actually, there is a long list of such players in Indian cricket who did not get the opportunity to play senior cricket as per their talent. In this list, one name from current cricket is that of Sanju Samson. Everyone believes that this wicketkeeper-batsman-captain of Kerala has talent, then where, what went wrong? The most common factor is not being given a place in the team by proving to be number 2 compared to someone else in every role. When this happens continuously, it will affect the player's own performance, then the argument becomes – justice was not done to this talent and he did not take advantage of the opportunities given to him. Sanju never got the 'trust' and confidence that he needed from the selectors.
With the performance of IPL 2024, they have once again brought the selectors to the same question and coincidentally, during the IPL itself, the World Cup team of the same format has to be selected which is playing in the IPL. Will this time too, despite his record, ignore him? If this is done then Team India will lose the advantage of the X factor that it can get with Sanju. First of all, take a look at Sanju's record in IPL 2024 (till April 13):
Batsman: 264 runs in 6 matches at 66 average and 155+ strike rate.
- Only Virat Kohli and Ryan Parag have more runs than him.
- 3 Fifty And They And Ryan Parag Equal
- 25 fours and 11 sixes – and no one crossed the count of 20 fours and 10 sixes
- Virat and Ryan are not captains – Sanju is playing with additional responsibility
Captain: Rajasthan Royals top the points table with 5 wins in 6 matches.
So what else does Team India need? If he can play shots as per the need of the team, he also becomes an anchor. That is why a strong claim has been made for the wicketkeeper-batsman in the team for the T20 World Cup to be held in June. Well, there are other options but the likes of KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan and Jitesh Sharma were left behind in the race. Yes, votes are increasing for Rishabh Pant but everyone knows – Rishabh Pant has looked good in bits and pieces, he is not 100 per cent fit yet and it will take time to look in his top form again.
That's why note – likes of Brian Lara and Ambati Rayudu are selecting both Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant in their possible team. However, if we look at the team, at this time the decision needs to be taken not by emotions but by the current record and that X factor will be achieved only by selecting Sanju. See
How :
- Opener also needed
- A match-winning batsman who puts his batting in the right gear after seeing the match situation – he can score 50 runs in 30 balls and even 30 runs by playing with patience.
- Amazing option to bat at number 4/5 if early wickets fall early.
- The team needs a batsman at any number, however, the best batsman is at number 3.
- Has batted in the 4-5-6 slot in his last 9 T20s (with a top score of 40 against Ireland)
- He tops the charts among all wicketkeepers with 1500+ runs since 2020 and has scored almost 90 percent of these runs at number 3.
- He can also be a finisher when needed and can also play punches in the middle and death overs – everyone remembers the partnership of 112 runs in 48 balls with Hetmyer.
For the success of the team, it is most important that the captain gets the right inputs during the match and a lot is expected from the wicketkeeper. Sanju is not only a wicketkeeper, but also a captain himself and knows which of his inputs will be useful to the team – in this role, he can play the same role for Rohit Sharma that MS Dhoni played for Virat Kohli in white ball cricket.
Selectors will avoid 'eliminating' a player. He should have even been in the team that went to China in 2023 – they deserved better and if they don't choose like this, they will destroy the player. Napoleon has a famous statement – Talent is nothing without opportunity. This statement fits wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson. Ravi Shastri often demanded – give Samson a chance to play 'at least 10 consecutive matches' to prove his talent.
