Shastri backs World Cup star for future India T20I captaincy
Ravi Shastri has put forward Sanju Samson as a contender for India’s T20I captaincy on the latest episode of The ICC Review.
Former India coach Ravi Shastri believes in-form batter Sanju Samson has emerged as a candidate for India’s T20I captaincy.
Suryakumar Yadav led India to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title at home two months ago, where Samson was named Aramco Player of the Tournament.
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“India, come the next (T20) World Cup (in 2028), might be looking for a new captain, depending on how Surya goes over the next couple of years,” Shastri said, speaking to Sanjana Ganesan on The ICC Review.
“But Sanju Samson has put himself there for a leadership role because he's done that in the past for Rajasthan (Royals).
“And he's a certainty in the side, at the top of the order, extremely destructive. So I see him, this is just the start of something more you'll see from Sanju over the next two or three years.”
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Samson had led Rajasthan Royals in the IPL for five seasons, including in 2022, when they finished runners-up.
In international cricket, Samson has been in the form of his life, with the 31-year-old scoring three successive half-centuries during India’s victorious T20 World Cup campaign.
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There have been questions about Samson’s consistency in the past, but Shastri didn’t think it was an issue now.
“I think he (Samson) has put a lid on all those question marks. There was always ability. People would, in fact, be disappointed because he wouldn't do justice to that ability," Shastri noted.
“But my word this season, the way he's played after his performance in the T20 World Cup where single-handedly he almost won India games, the big games, the quarter-finals (West Indies, Super 8), semi-finals, the final, and the way he stepped up and the maturity he's showing now in the IPL, makes him a clear case as far as I'm concerned for leadership in the future.”