The absence of Sanju Samson from the playing eleven has been a controversial debate. After low scores in the T20I series defeat against Ireland and in the series opener against England, Samson was dropped to make way for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. But, the Shreyas Iyer-led side is yet to win a match on the UK tour since he has take over captaincy. On July 7 at Trent Bridge, Nottingham, India hit a new low. The three-time T20 World Champions were bundled out for 76, their lowest total since 2008 and second-lowest overall. As the players made their way to the team bus, fans chanted ‘We want Sanju’ as the senior player did not get the long rope despite performances in the T20 World Cup 2026 triumph.
Samson is also among the few players who are not part of the T20I squad for Zimbabwe tour later this month. It has led to speculations about the 31-year-old’s future. He is not in the reckoning for ODIs where he scored a century in his previous appearance against South Africa in 2023.
What Gambhir said about Samson snub?
But, head coach Gautam Gambhir has made it clear that he has given Samson clarity. He revealed that Samson’s lack of form led to him getting benched. He did not rule out the possibility of Samson featuring in the playing eleven on the England tour in the remaining two games.
“The first thing is that regarding the clarity Sanju Samson needed, he has been given that from my side. That’s a conversation strictly between the player and the head coach. That conversation is not going to come outside,” Gambhir said.
“Regarding Sanju, we are very clear what he has done for India has been phenomenal and sometimes you just have to look at the form of a certain player. There is no hard and fast rule that he cannot make a comeback in this series,” he added.
When will India face England next?
While Gambhir admitted that the team management is trying new things in transition phase, it is not certain whether Samson gets the nod for the remaining two T20Is. India will now face Harry Brook’s England in the must-win fourth T20I at Country Ground, Bristol on July 9.