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MSK Prasad discusses Sanju Samson’s Asia Cup selection dilemma, highlighting his top-order success and competition with Jitesh Sharma for India’s XI.
Sanju Samson’s spot in India’s Asia Cup playing XI is in doubt (Picture credit: AFP)
Former India wicketkeeper MSK Prasad has said that Sanju Samson has two centuries to his credit in South Africa while batting up in the order, but unless he is slotted in the top order, he doesn’t find a place in the Indian playing XI for Asia Cup, although he didn’t do anything wrong to be benched.
Samson was given a consistent run at the top of the order during the T20I team’s transition under head coach Gautam Gambhir. He made a strong statement early in his stint as an opener, smashing three hundreds in five matches.
Ahead of India’s opening clash against the United Arab Emirates in the Asia Cup, significant uncertainty surrounds Sanju Samson’s place in the playing XI as an opener.
“If Sanju is slotted at number 3, then he will play. He has even scored back-to-back centuries in South Africa, batting higher up. In the pecking order, he comes ahead of Jitesh,” Prasad said while speaking to The Times of India.
“But if he is not batting at 3, then I do not see him finding a place at 5 or 6. In my view, the batting order should be: Sanju at 3, Suryakumar at 4 and then someone like Rinku at 6,” Prasad added.
The former Indian selector reiterated that Samson has always been most effective batting up the order, adding that if the team management wants a top-order wicketkeeper-batter, Samson should be in the XI in place of Jitesh Sharma.
“Jitesh is a better finisher, no doubt. He understands that role well. Sanju, on the other hand, has always been most effective batting up the order. So it really depends on what the team management wants,” Prasad said.
“If they need a top-order wicketkeeper, then Sanju is the obvious choice. But if they feel the top order is settled and need a finisher, then Jitesh might get the nod. Either way, it’s a good problem to have, but to be honest, what wrong did Sanju do to be sidelined? He has scored hundreds in South Africa and you can’t ignore that,” Prasad added.
September 09, 2025, 16:23 IST
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