Rahane questions BCCI on Sanju Samson’s snub from Zimbabwe squad:T20 World Cup hero rested, not dropped – Reports

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Monday announced India’s squad for the Zimbabwe Tour, and immediately cricket experts noticed that India’s T20 World Cup hero Sanju Samson was not part of the squad. Rather, the team has given four maiden international call-ups to players like Ashok Sharma, Harsh Dubey, Prabh Simran Singh and Yash Thakur. Meanwhile, Rinku Singh and Mayank Yadav are also given a chance, but the player who led India to 2nd T20 World Cup glory is not part of the team. As expected, it has not sat well with the cricket fraternity, and even a seasoned former cricketer like Ajinkya Rahane has raised concerns over Sanju’s omission. On the other hand, reports on why Samson is not part of India’s squad for the Zimbabwe tour tell a different story. Let’s read about what Rahane exactly questioned the BCCI about Samson and what insiders suggest on India opener’s snub. ‘Find it odd that our T20 WC hero is left out’: Ajinkya Rahane Expressing his displeasure over Sanju Samson’s snub from the India’s T20I squad for the Zimbabwe tour, former cricketer publicly questioned the BCCI, “Hope there has been some communication with Sanju Samson. Find it odd that the hero of our recent T20 WC win has been left out of the T20 squad to Zimbabwe. Hope to see him back in the team soon.” Rahane called out management’s decision on his Instagram story with the above caption. However, in contrast to Rahane’s displeasure over dropping Samson, it has been learned, as per media reports, that the India opener is rather rested. Sanju Samson rested, not dropped for Zimbabwe tour As per the Indian Express’ report, it has been learned that the Player of the Tournament of the T20 World Cup 2026 is neither dropped nor has the selection committee moved on from him. Rather, he has been rested to give a chance to Prabhsimran Singh, who had a decent IPL for Punjab Kings. Moreover, Samson is not the only player rested, but Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, and Washington Sundar have also missed the 15-member squad for the same reason. It’s worth noting that Samson will travel with Team India for the Asian Games in Japan, and there is no change to that. Why were Samson and other players rested? A major reason why Sanju Samson and other mentioned players have been rested is understood to be due to India’s packed cricket calendar. The ODIs against England end only on 19 July, and the first T20I against Zimbabwe will be played in Harare on July 23. So the turnaround time for players and staff to rest and recuperate is very short, considering that the Men in Blue will tour the nation. Like the players, the coaching staff is also expected to take a break after the ongoing England series. Therefore, even the coaching duties might be handed over to a new coach and support staff for the Zimbabwe tour and even the Asian Games since they overlap with the early part of West Indies’ tour of India. VVS Laxman and other CoE staff to replace Gambhir on Zimbabwe tour Apart from the Samson issue, there have been reports circulating that the regular support staff of the Indian cricket team might also skip the Zimbabwe tour. There is no official confirmation, but if the regular staff- head coach Gautam Gambhir, batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, bowling coach Morne Morkel and others don’t go on the Zimbabwe tour, the Centre of Excellence (CoE) coaching staff is expected to take on the coaching duties. As per Times of India report, it has been learned as per the same report that CoE head VVS Laxman will go as Head Coach to India’s tours of Zimbabwe the Asian Games in Japan. The division of coaching duties will take place as the Asian Games overlap with the early part of West Indies’ tour of India. These discussions occurred because the turnaround time between the ODIs against England and the Zimbabwe series is very short. But it is yet to be seen whether the Gambhir-led support staff boards the flight or if the Indian cricket board gives the green light to the CoE coaching panel.