Asia Cup: Gautam Gambhir asked to drop Tilak Varma and push ‘senior most’ Sanju Samson up the order in XI

Sanju Samson and Gautam Gambhir. (BCCI Photo)

In the forthcoming Asia Cup 2025, former India cricketer Mohammad Kaif feels Sanju Samson should start at number three instead of Tilak Varma. India, captained by Suryakumar Yadav, have a lot of choices to make before they kick off their campaign against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on September 10. It is virtually certain that Shubman Gill, 25, will open the batting alongside Abhishek Sharma now that he has been named the squad's vice-captain.

This puts Samson's role in jeopardy. Alongside Abhishek, the right-hander has been opening the batting for the past 12 months. Last year, the 30-year-old smashed three T20I hundreds, including two against South Africa and one against Bangladesh.

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Samson has performed admirably in the Kerala Cricket League as well, where he began by batting lower down the order. But unable to get going, Samson came back as an opener after two games and the runs began to come in.

Dropping Tilak won't be so simple, though, as the left-handed youngster has also been superb, taking advantage of his chances to bat at No. 3 for India in Twenty20 Internationals. Even Tilak struck consecutive hundreds against South Africa last year, and the management has a serious selection dilemma ahead of the Asia Cup.

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“Abhishek Sharma and Shubman Gill will open in the Asia Cup. For the No. 3 spot, I feel Tilak Varma is a youngster and can wait for his turn. Sanju is an experienced batter, and he could be groomed by giving him consistent opportunities at No. 3. There is a World Cup after six months, and he deserves a chance,” Kaif said in a video shared on his Instagram account.

Given his ability to hit maximums down the ground, Kaif thinks Samson would be the best choice to take on Rashid Khan if India were to play a team like Afghanistan in the Asia Cup.

“He is among the top 10 six-hitters in the IPL. That's why I believe when Rashid Khan comes to bowl in the middle overs, there cannot be a better player against him than Sanju, as he can hit sixes down the ground,” said Kaif.

“South Africa has one of the toughest conditions for batting, and he has hit two centuries as an opener there. He plays both pace and spin well, and in the IPL, he scores 400-500 runs every year,” he added.

Samson has been playing well lately, according to the former India batter, and he will be difficult to be overlooked in the eight-team competition that starts on September 9 with the opening game between Afghanistan and Hong Kong.

“Do you know that Sanju Samson is the most senior member of this Asia Cup squad. He made his debut in 2015. He was then a part of the T20 World Cup-winning squad in 2024 in Barbados,” said Kaif.

“He didn't get to play, but when he did get a chance, he scored runs for fun, 180 strike rate. He scored almost 450 runs. He has been scoring runs in the Kerala Cricket League and is in fine form,” he added.