World Cup 2023 door still not closed for Sanju Samson, Ashwin & Prasidh Krishna

Wednesday, Sep 6, 2023 11:12 pm

Even though BCCI has not named reserves for World Cup 2023, the Rajasthan Royals trio are the unofficial reserves and can make it to the squad on or after September 27.

Expect the unexpected and never be disappointed. Sanju Samson has learnt the mantra but his fans haven’t. But his clan can still keep their fingers crossed. All hopes are not lost for the Rajasthan Royals trio of Sanju Samson, Ravichandran Ashwin and Prasidh Krishna. They can still make it to India squad for World Cup 2023. Even though BCCI Selection Committee chief Ajit Agarkar announced the squad for WC on Tuesday, the last cut-off date is September 27. India can still change the squad by that date and hence it’s not THE END for the trio.

Fans were disappointed when selectors omitted Sanju Samson from the squad. It was an expected move to make way for Suryakumar Yadav. The Rajasthan Royals captain has done everything he needed to make it to the squad. Yet, in a format where Sanju has not only excelled but also annihilated his competition by miles failed to make it.

To make things worse, Sanju Samson won’t even wear the India jersey until the T20 series against Australia post World Cup 2023. The reason? He has not even in Asian Games 2023 squad either.

“It is not a bad thing when people are fighting for their spots. The challenges increase and it gets harder. But we have to see who is in form, who the opposition is and which player can benefit the most in those circumstances. It happens all the time. We have seen in cricket that you have to make tough choices to ensure the team gets what it needs,” Rohit Sharma said during the press conference to announce the squad.

However, there is some good news for the disappointed clan of Sanju Samson supporters. He can still make it to the squad, but only if there is an injury. India will play a three-match ODI series against Australia as final preparation before World Cup 2023. And even though it is unlikely that Sanju Samson will be in the squad to face Australia, any injury could see him in the final WC squad.

As per an Indian Express report, Sanju Samson, Prasidh Krishna and Ravichandran Ashwin besides Tilak Varma will be the reserve players even though BCCI has not originally named any. Since India are the hosts, they do not necessarily need to name any reserves.

Will Sanju Samson be in World Cup 2023 squad?

Selectors did not want to pick a third wicketkeeper. Hence, Samson missed out. KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan would be the two keeper-batters.
But KL Rahul is still returning from an injury and with a lot of travelling, any further injury cannot be ruled out.
Team India will be the most travelled team before World Cup 2023 final squad submission date. And thus, they need injury cover.
Sanju Samson having already made an impression as India’s designated finisher in ODIs is not out of contention.
In fact, he is a cover for two players: Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan. If Rahul is fit, he is 100% certain to start against Australia in their World Cup 2023 opener on Oct 8.

As for the other three, the path is difficult but not impossible. Ravichandran Ashwin is the cover for Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav if either of them suffers any injury. The veteran off-spinner is the biggest miss. But considering his recent numbers in ODIs, it was not unexpected.

Similarly, Prasidh Krishna could offer a zip in the fast bowling department. But Shardul Thakur’s superior batting ability helped him sneak in. As for Tilak Varma, he was never really in contention. But since he is a handy left-hander with some off-spin bowling skills, he is the next on the list.