Gautam Gambhir, Ajit Agarkar Slammed Over Big Sanju Samson Call: "Doesn't Feel Right"
Robin Uthappa was left stunned by the team management's decision to leave Sanju Samson out of the squad for the upcoming T20I series against Zimbabwe.
- Robin Uthappa was left stunned by the decision to leave Sanju Samson out of the squad for the Zimbabwe T20Is
- Uthappa questioned the lack of consistency shown by the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee
- "My first thought was: how long are you going to keep treating one player like this?" he said
Former Indian cricket team batter Robin Uthappa was left stunned by the team management's decision to leave Sanju Samson out of the squad for the upcoming T20I series against Zimbabwe. Uthappa questioned the lack of consistency shown by the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee as they decided to drop Samson even after his brilliant show in the T20 World Cup 2026. The committee went with Ishan Kishan and Prabhsimran Singh as the specialist wicket-keeping options. When it comes to the openers, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is expected to become Abhishek Sharma's partner at the top of the batting order.
“When I first saw the squad, I genuinely thought it was one of those fan-made teams circulating online because Sanju's name wasn't there," Uthappa said on YouTube. “Then I realised it was the actual squad, and my first thought was: how long are you going to keep treating one player like this? It just doesn't feel right."
Samson did not enjoy a brilliant run of form in T20Is after the T20 World Cup but Uthappa believed that leaving him out from the squad altogether did not make sense and was an overreaction of sorts.
“Here's a player who helped win you a World Cup just four months ago. Maybe he has been told he's being rested, but does someone deserve to be left out because of two first-ball dismissals and another low score? That doesn't make sense to me. It feels like the decisions are becoming reactive instead of being part of a clear plan."
Meanwhile, Ajinkya Rahane expressed surprise over the omission of wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson from India's T20I squad for the Zimbabwe tour, saying he hoped the selectors had communicated the decision to the player.
Sharing an Instagram Story, Rahane backed Samson and said he expected the wicketkeeper-batter to return to the national side soon. "Hope there has been some communication with @imsanjusamson. Find it odd that the hero of our recent T20 WC win has been left out of the T20 squad to Zimbabwe. Hope to see him back in the team soon," Rahane wrote on his Instagram Story.
(Wtih ANI inputs)
Robin Uthappa
Sanju Samson