Aakash Chopra isn’t holding back. The former India batter has openly questioned the BCCI’s selection panel over Sanju Samson’s continued exclusion from the ODI squad, a decision that has left many fans scratching their heads. While the Kerala wicketkeeper-batter has been left out of the final two matches against New Zealand, Chopra points out that other keepers like KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and Dhruv Jurel are also missing from the lineup. With Ishan Kishan named vice-captain, the logic for dropping Samson seems thin to Chopra, who notes that Samson’s ODI numbers are far from disastrous.
The numbers tell a different story than the narrative circulating on social media. Samson has amassed 510 runs in just 14 ODI innings, maintaining a respectable average of 56.67. His last ODI appearance was in December 2023 against South Africa in Paarl, where he struck a solid 108 off 114 balls. Chopra argues that despite these figures, the selectors appear to have already made up their minds about Samson’s future in the format, effectively giving the batter a “lifetime subscription to pressure.”
The argument gets sharper when looking at the T20I metrics. Chopra compared the last 20 innings of Samson, Ishan Kishan, and Abhishek Sharma, revealing a statistical anomaly. Samson has scored 657 runs at a strike rate of 183.51, outperforming Kishan (625 runs, 152.06 SR) and Sharma (584 runs, 200.00 SR) in bulk, despite Sharma’s higher strike rate. Kishan currently sits at No. 1 in the ICC T20I batting rankings, while Sharma is No. 2, yet Chopra insists Samson’s consistent run-scoring deserves more credit than it receives.
Recent performances have only fueled the debate. After being dropped during the UK tour following three failures, Samson responded with half-centuries in the second and third matches of the Afghanistan series. He recently finished as India’s second-highest run-scorer in the West Indies series, accumulating 168 runs at a 193.35 strike rate. Despite this form, questions persist about his place in the squad, with some online chatter even suggesting Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s exclusion is the real issue.
Chopra’s defense comes at a critical juncture for Samson’s career, as the team heads into upcoming fixtures. The selector’s decision to keep Kumar Kushagra while dropping Samson, despite Kushagra’s good domestic form, has raised eyebrows. As India prepares for the next leg of their tour, the pressure remains squarely on Samson to justify his spot with more consistent performances.