India’s right-handed opener Samson Samson regained his spot in the playing eleven for T20 Internationals for India in an unexpected way, as Shubman Gill was forced to be ruled out due to a toe injury in the night before the fourth match in the series of five matches in Lucknow.
Being given a clear chance, he made good use of it and scored an impressive 37 in just 22 balls, thus establishing his value as an opener when he is given a straight and honest chance.
Replying to the win in the series decider match against India in Ahmedabad, Samson expressed his views on losing his opening role to Gill. The young cricketer was quoted as saying that he is happy with his relationship with the team management. According to him, there is an effective communication channel between him and the team captain/coach regarding his plans for the future of the team.
“The team environment is really important because a big tournament is coming up. I have been in the system long enough to know what they were trying to do. I know what the leadership group were trying to do as I am quite experienced,” said Samson.
“I have a good relationship with both Gautam Gambhir and Suryakumar Yadav, so communication is quite open with them,” he added.
Gill was reintroduced in the T20I team as the vice-captain in early 2023, which led to Samson being adjusted in the batting order. This was the early stage since when the team failed to score key runs in the middle-order spot, the 31-year-old player was excluded from the playing eleven.
However, the plight of Gill in marking his presence after the return hasn’t been smooth either. After the Asia Cup, the opener has still not been able to score fifty in the T-20 format of international cricket, and in the series against South Africa, he has scored 4, 0, and 28 in three respective matches. The last innings he scored was at a run-a-ball pace, and this has also led his presence being questioned.
While addressing JioHotstar with Irfan Pathan and Varun Aaron on JioHotstar after the game, Samson reiterated that his discussions with Gautam Gambhir and Suryakumar Yadav are crystal clear. The conversation took a humorous turn when Pathan suddenly asked Samson about whether he will open the innings for India in a series featuring New Zealand. Samson was taken aback by the question and just burst out laughing. It is important to note that Samson had a very good season last year, scoring three T20 international hundreds. Unfortunately, the series against England in January led to the loss of the opening spot, which was then handed away to Gill.
“Bhaiya, aap karado open, main kya bolu yaar. Aise sawaal nahi puchne chahiye, Irfan bhai. (Please you make me open, what should I say? You shouldn’t ask these questions. (laughs),” said Samson.