Sanju Samson’s India Predicament

Sanju Samson. (Source – BCCI)

It must be tough right now if your name is Sanju Viswanath Samson. At the age of 29, he finds himself staring at the same traveled path that he has since he burst onto the scene. Just when it seemed that the world was starting to look good for Samson, there was a huge sledgehammer blow. Despite his stellar performances in recent times, he hasn’t found his name being considered for selection for the Sri Lankan tour.

It must be hurting him for sure, and there is no better way to put it. Cricketers too are employees, who need a hand around their shoulder which can be seen as reassuring. Samson for all his talent has been seen as a player who is just one light switch flick away from making it count.

For a player who has been at the top of his game since announcing himself as a youngster, many felt he would be the next MS Dhoni. His stroke-play has the panache of Mahela Jayawardene, his power hitting is in a different class. There is no better batter who looks more assured when he steps down the track to the spinners.

Samson can be called the ‘Crisis Man’ of Indian cricket. He is almost like the fire extinguisher inside the glass that is ignored for a long and broken open only when the house is on fire. 

Yet another career setback for Sanju Samson?

In 2022 when India was touring West Indies, there were visuals of fans mobbing Sanju Samson. It was almost like the peak of Hulk Hogan’s ‘Hulkamania’ Craze and many fans dubbed it the Sanju Mania. Then aged 27, many felt he was finally going to make it count and be part of the Indian side for the T20 World Cup that year. 

The selectors though went with the popular choice, Dinesh Karthik and Rishabh Pant for the tournament. The fans were outraged as this was the same batter who had scored a T20I ton during the tour of Ireland a few months ago

Two years later, Samson was part of the Indian team that won the T20 World Cup. However, His only appearance came during the lone warm-up game versus Bangladesh where he failed to score.

With Rishabh Pant being named the all-format number-one keeper and Dhruv Jurel being the backup, it seems Samson might have to start all over again. But there is something that cannot be forgotten or ignored. Since Indian cricket fans love to consume stats and numbers here can blow away fans’ minds.

Rishabh Pant made his IPL Debut in 2016, while Sanju Samson made his debut way back in 2013. The two players have amazing records in the league but barring three seasons, (including one that Pant didn’t play in 2023) Samson has come out on top in each of them. The numbers don’t lie which one can see in the table below.

Sanju Samson vs Rishabh Pant

The above table does show Pant edging Samson in terms of strike rate. But if one looks at the numbers closely, Samson has been par with the run-scoring of Rishabh Pant and stands as a viable candidate for the Indian team as a prominent wicketkeeper-batter. 

Dhruv Jurel superseding Sanju Samson will surely hurt the Rajasthan Royals skipper. While Sanju Samson hasn’t been good in the T20I format this year, his record in the ODI format last year was decent where he scored 180 runs from five matches with one ton and one half-century with an average of 45 and a strike rate of 91.

What more does Sanju Samson have to do? What more options does he have? Sanju Samson knows that he has to do something extraordinary to make sure he gains his place back. With all the talent he has, one cannot rule out Sanju Samson ever, but will the luck favor him? It is indeed tough being Sanju Samson.