'That’s the ideal balance': Ex-IND selector ends Samson debate; questions 'what wrong did Sanju do to be sidelined'

Suryakumar Yadav and Sanju Samson (BCCI Photo)

Sanju Samson has shown promise as an opener since the 2024 T20 World Cup, and former India wicketkeeper and chief selector MSK Prasad believes he shouldn't be left out of the starting lineup. With Jitesh Sharma as a reliable wicket-keeping option and Shubman Gill returning to the T201 team as vice-captain, the right-handed batter's spot is in jeopardy ahead of the Asia Cup 2025.

As the T20I team under Gautam Gambhir's coaching underwent a shift, Samson was given a fair shot at the top of the order. In his first five games as an opener, the wicket-keeper batsman made a huge impression by scoring three hundreds. He and Abhishek Sharma forged a solid chemistry, opening together in each of India's last three bilateral T20I series.

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Samson's selection in the playing XI, particularly as an opener, is highly contested ahead of Team India's opening match against the UAE at the Asia Cup 2025. According to MSK Prasad, the Kerala glovesman ought to be given preference over Jitesh and might possibly start at number three.

"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. But if he’s not batting at 3, then I don’t 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. That’s the ideal balance," MSK Prasad told the Times of India.

"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. 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," he added.

Over the years, Samson played a lot of Indian Premier League (IPL) games for the Rajasthan Royals (RR) at number three. He has amassed 3096 runs at an average of 38.22 and a strike-rate of 143.33 in 94 innings. He has, however, batted three times at number three in T20I cricket, scoring 33 runs at a strike rate of 126.92.