‘Samson must keep Virat Kohli as role model’:Sanjay Manjrekar says fitness could be possible reason for Sanju’s T20I snub

Fprmer cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar feels that fitness could be a possible reason behind Sanju Samson being dropped from India’s T20I team. Samson’s T20I omission from the last two T20Is against England and his absence from the tour of Zimbabwe, have come as a surprise for many, given that he was Player of the Tournament at the T20 World Cup earlier this year. After scoring just six runs in three T20Is following the T20 World Cup, Samson has been relegated to the bench in the England series. Head coach Gautam Gambhir revealed that he has given full clarity to Samson over his T20I future while mentioning that the chat need not be made public. Manjrekar felt that Samson’s fitness might not be up to the mark, leading to him being dropped. ‘Samson must keep Virat as his role model’ Taking to X, the former cricketer wrote that if Samson was dropped for his fitness, it was a ‘fair call’. He further went on to add that the wicketkeeper-batter should follow Virat Kohli as a role model. Kohli, 37, is one of the fittest cricketers among all active players in the world, despite playing just the ODI format. His fitness has inspired countless across the globe. There were reports doing the rounds that stated Samson was rested and not dropped for the T20Is against Zimbabwe. Samson, however, is part of India’s Asian Games squad. Also read: MS Dhoni’s ‘growing old’ gesture at fans on 45th birthday: ‘We want Sanju’ chant outside stadium after Samson’s T20I snub | WATCH ‘Not that Samson cannot make comeback in England series’ Gambhir, while speaking on Samson’s omission, also said that there was no reason why the wicketkeeper-batter could not return to the playing XI in the ongoing T20I series against England. Batting woes have hurt India badly, with the Men in Blue suffering their biggest loss in T20Is, by 125 runs in the third T20I. “The clarity that should have been given to Sanju Samson, he has got from me,” Gambhir said at a press conference after India were bowled out for 76 while chasing 202. “And that conversation is between a head coach and a player. The contents of that conversation are obviously not to be shared,” he added. “We are absolutely clear that what Sanju has done for India, especially during the World Cup, has been phenomenal. Sometimes, though, you also have to look at the form of a certain player. There is no hard and fast rule that he cannot make a comeback in this series,” the Team India head coach further explained.