Before the beginning of India’s opening match against the UAE, one of the talking points was the selection of Sanju Samson as wicketkeeper-batter in the Men in Blue’s playing XI. There was uncertainty looming over Samson’s place in the team due to the return of Shubman Gill to the T20I setup after a year as vice-captain. Reports suggested that Samson had fewer batting sessions in the nets compared to Jitesh Sharma, raising the possibility of the latter being picked for India’s Asia Cup 2025 opener.
All the speculations were put to rest when Samson was slotted at No.5 in the batting line-up, demoting from the opener’s slot, wherein he batted at in the last three T20I series against Bangladesh, South Africa, and England. Samson might not have gotten a chance to bat, but he took a brilliant catch to dismiss Asif Khan off Shivam Dube’s delivery.