Suryakumar Yadav remained mum on India’s playing XI in their 2025 Asia Cup opener against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Wednesday, with just about 24 hours left for the match to start at the Dubai International Stadium, as Sanju Samson’s spot remains a topic of hot discussion.
For those unversed, Samson impressed after being promoted to open the batting as he took the first-choice wicket-keeper’s spot. In India’s last seven games of 2024, Samson opened the batting and scored three tons, the most by a player in a calendar year in the shortest format.
However, the Rajasthan Royals (RR) skipper started the year poorly, as in India’s last assignment in T20I cricket against England in January-February, he made just 51 runs in five matches. Later, a stop-start Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign did not help his cause either.
For the 2025 Asia Cup, India had their first-choice squad available, which led to the return of Shubman Gil. The 26-year-old is set to open the batting as the vice-captain of the team, which has cast doubt over where Samson will bat in a well-settled batting unit. Jitesh Sharma is a natural fit for the lower order, which has left India with a big call to make on their glovesman for the game.
Suryakumar Yadav’s Cryptic Reply to Sanju Samson’s Query
Suryakumar gave a cryptic reply when asked about Samson at the pre-tournament captain’s press conference.
‘Sir, aapko playing XI message kar detaI (I will message you the playing XI),” Suryakumar Yadv replied to the reporter in a tongue-in-cheek manner.
‘We are taking good care of him (Sanju Samson). Don’t worry, we will take care of him tomorrow,” Suryakumar added.
If India picks Jitesh in the playing XI, it will mark his first appearance for the Men in Blue since January 2024, when he featured against Afghanistan in the 2nd T20 of the three-match series in Indore. Interestingly, he was replaced by Samson in the third and final T20I of that same series.