Sanju Samson's omission from India's squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Zimbabwe has sparked fresh debate, with former India opener Sadagoppan Ramesh launching a scathing attack on chief selector Ajit Agarkar and the selection committee.
The controversy comes after Samson was first left out of India's playing XI for the second T20I against England, where he made way for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. The wicketkeeper-batter has now also lost his place in the Zimbabwe-bound squad, with Prabhsimran Singh preferred instead.
Reacting strongly to the decision, Ramesh argued that the selectors had been unfair to a player who was instrumental in India's successful T20 World Cup title defence. He even claimed that Agarkar's continuation as chief
selector was a direct consequence of India's World Cup triumph, in which Samson played a defining role.
"The Agarkar, who dropped Samson, is in an extension period himself. His contract was to end in June but the T20 World Cup triumph helped extend his time. And it was Sanju, who played a major role behind that victory. So Sanju Samson is the reason Agarkar is even a selector in this extended period now. It is extremely harsh treatment to drop someone three matches after he was the Player of the Tournament in a World Cup," Ramesh said in a video on his YouTube channel.
"In the semifinal and final, he had the opportunity to complete his century. But without thinking selfishly for personal milestones, he played for the team and got out. Such team-players should be the first ones backed," said Ramesh.
"How can a player of the tournament in a World Cup be dropped from the squad after three failures? Out of those three innings, the entire team failed in two of them in Ireland. It looks like those who took these three innings forgot about his previous three innings that won India the World Cup," he added.
Samson enjoyed a dream T20 World Cup campaign before India's tour of the United Kingdom, producing match-winning knocks of 97* against the West Indies in a virtual quarter-final, 89 in the semi-final against England, and another 89 in the title clash against New Zealand. His performances earned him the Player of the Tournament award as India retained the trophy. But in the recent matches, Samson's lack of runs (6 runs in 3 innings) has forced his omission from the Indian team, as the Kerala player was replaced by Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
