IND vs WI: 'With Rishabh Pant's Absence, Sanju Samson Should Be Handed Extended Opportunity,' Believes Irfan Pathan

Irfan Pathan lauded the Kerala-born cricketer and said that he wants to see him in the ODI squad for a long time this time.

Sanju Samson was once considered the greatest young talents in the country in white-ball cricket. However, a couple of years later, Samson failed to impress and players like Ishan Kishan and Rishabh Pant were in favor of the selectors which sidelined the Rajasthan Royals skipper for a while.

After a while, Samson was again called up for Team India but he could only warm the bench in the New Zealand series last year. Later on, he was dropped from the Bangladesh series without any reason and social media went buzzing for the selection of the wicket-keeper batter.

After a fine performance in the IPL, Samson has once again made his place in the national team and this time he deserves an extended opportunity, believes Irfan Pathan. With the current first choice keeper Rishabh Pant injured, Pathan believes Samson should be a regular in the ODI squad of India.

"Given Pant's ongoing recovery, it's time to give Sanju Samson an extended opportunity in one-day cricket. With his skills as a proficient middle-order wicketkeeper-batsman and excellent spin-playing abilities, he could prove to be a valuable addition," Pathan tweeted on Friday, June 23. (Exclusive: 'His Best Is Yet To Come,' Says Sanju Samson's Childhood Coach Biju George Ahead Of India's Tour Of West Indies)

Known faces missing from IND vs WI Tour

Shreyas Iyer and Jasprit Bumrah are still recovering from their respective injuries after missing most of the cricket in the year 2022. Iyer is one of the most impactful players in the Indian middle-order but he missed the IPL 2023 and the WTC final as well due to injury struggles.

Jasprit Bumrah, who is known to lead the Indian bowling attack in all three formats is also missing since Rohit Sharma took over captaincy from Virat Kohli. Reports suggest that Bumrah will be available for the upcoming series against Ireland if he recovers well enough in time.  

India squad for WI tour

India’s ODI squad: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Surya Kumar Yadav, Sanju Samson (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya (vice-captain), Shardul Thakur, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohd. Siraj, Umran Malik, Mukesh Kumar.