Samson raises question on consistency vs merit as Rohit-Dravid prefers SKYfall

Before the IND vs WI 1st ODI, Sanju Samson was seen in conversation with bowling coach Paras Mhambrey as they assessed the pitch. Zoom out a little, and Ishan Kishan was warming up. The signs were clear and Rohit Sharma’s lineup confirmed the same: SKY, Kishan IN, Sanju Samson on the bench. AGAIN.

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Indian Cricket Team and their fans were wounded when Ambati Rayudu was axed from the 2019 WC. In that essence, Samson is no Rayudu. But Suryakumar Yadav could very well be 2023 World Cup’s Vijay Shankar.

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Captain Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid backed their boss’ call for consistency to pick Suryakumar Yadav on Thursday. India’s Mr.360 was afforded yet another chance to make a mark. For the 16th time in a row, he missed. And for the 13th instance, Sanju watched on hoping for luck to go his way.

At a time when India’s two first-choice keepers find themselves injured, Samson’s exclusion is beyond belief. Add to that the injury to Shreyas Iyer, the Rajasthan Royals’ skipper would have hoped for his chance. Instead, it was Suryakumar, who made the XI, wearing a Sanju Samson kit. The 28-year-old has missed India’s last 13 ODIs, spanning over the last 8 months. Opportunities in T20s also have been hard to come by.

Other than circumstances, there is merit to Sanju Samson’s selection. Unlike Kishan, he is flexible batting anywhere in the top 7. Unlike Surya, he has the stats to justify his selection. In 10 ODI innings, Sanju has an average of 66 scoring at a strike rate of 104.76.

Sanju’s average is the most by a player among full member nations with at least 10 innings. He last played an ODI in November 2022 in New Zealand. In that defeat at Auckland, he stroked a vital 36 batting at No.6.

Even out of context, Samson’s 36 stands more valuable than Suryakumar Yadav’s last five ODI innings: 14, 0, 0, 0, 19. For all his theatrics in T20s, SKY’s numbers are beyond ordinary in ODIs: 452 runs in 22 innings @ 23.78.

Samson made his ODI debut in 2021 and has managed to play in only 11 games since then. In the two years, the Kerala-born superstar has done everything to break into the side. He juggled between keeping wickets and playing as an outfielder, captained Rajasthan Royals to an IPL final and scored runs. He tinkered with his technique and moulded his game to bat as per the demands of the situation. And while the situation demands a middle-order keeper-batsman, Sanju is left carrying drinks for his teammates.

Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid have always maintained clear reasoning in their backing of SKY. The 31-year-old has 3 T20I hundreds in 18 months and has taken the shortest format by storm. India needs him to deliver in short bursts and take the game away from the opposition. He is essentially an X-factor pick.

It is a role that Sanju understands clearly and performs with authority for his IPL side. In that chat Breakfast with Champions over a year ago, Samson spoke about his game plan.

“I’m not here to score lots and lots of runs. I’m here to score a small amount of runs which is very effective for the team,” he said.

The Indian Cricket Team have 11 ODIs to go before the World Cup 2023 kicks off. However, only 4 games remain before the squad selection deadline on Sept 5. With Rahul & Shreyas to return for the Asia Cup, Samson’s chances wind down to two matches. Thus, the question thus remains: consistency or merit?

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