Asia Cup 2023: Sanju Samson To Be Dropped From Team, India Squad To Be Announced On August 20- Report

Wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson is all set to face yet another blow in his international career as the Kerala star is likely to be snubbed for the upcoming Asia Cup.

Sanju Samson was expected to get a long rope from the selectors and the Indian team management in the absence of Rishabh Pant. Pant has been sidelined since being involved in the horrific car accident towards the end of the last year. However, injuries and poor performance have so far stopped Sanju Samson from cementing his spot in the Indian team.

He was recently in the Caribbean after being named in India’s ODI and T20I squads but failed to make a good impression with the batting. The team management made it clear that they prefer Ishan Kishan ahead of him for the wicketkeeper’s role and his poor batting did not help his cause either.

There was no place for him in the playing eleven for the first ODI before he scored 9 runs in his comeback game. In the third ODI, he played a 51-run knock but it was followed by three failures in a row in the T20I series. Sanju Samson had the opportunity to impress the selectors by doing well in pressure situations but he could only manage to register scores of 12, 7, and 13.

And the poor performance is likely to affect his chances of playing in the Asia Cup next month. According to a report from the Times of India, Sanju Samson is likely to be dropped from the team to make room for the players returning from injury. KL Rahul is set to be a part of the team and he is likely to replace Sanju Samson in the squad for the continental championship.

India squad to be announced on August 20:

The report further added that the BCCI is likely to announce Team India’s squad for Asia Cup 2023. Fast-bowler Prasidh Krishna is also in contention to make it to the squad after fully recovering from the back injury that he sustained in August last year. He is currently in Ireland for the three-match T20I series.

“Prasidh can generate pace and bounce and will give a new dimension to our pace attack. Before they pick the team for the Asia Cup, it will be nice if the selectors get to watch both Bumrah and Prasidh bowl in the opening T20I against Ireland on August 18,” the news outlet quoted a source as saying.

The source also explained the reason behind the delay in announcing the squad, saying: “Rahul is by and large fit, and is ‘keeping wickets too, while Shreyas Iyer (operated for a back injury) is still not 100%. Both have taken part in match simulations at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore and will play a practice match soon. The fitness of the players who are back from the West Indies tour will also be assessed by the team and NCA’s physios. Hence the delay in naming the team.”

Asia Cup 2023 is scheduled to be played from August 30 to September 17. Team India will open their campaign on September 2 against arch-rivals Pakistan.