Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir has clarified the reason behind dropping Sanju Samson from the playing XI for the second and third T20Is of the ongoing five-match series against England.
Speaking at the post-match press conference after India’s 125-run defeat in the third T20I against England, at Trent Bridge, Gambhir emphasized that there was no ‘hard and fast rule’ that would go against Samson’s comeback for the remainder of the two games in the series.
Samson, who had an exceptional ICC T20 World Cup 2026 campaign a few months ago, was dropped for the teen batting prodigy Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who made his debut in the second T20I in Manchester.
“The first thing is that regarding the clarity Sanju Samson needed, he has been given that from my side. That’s a conversation strictly between the player and the head coach. That conversation is not going to come outside,” Gambhir told reporters.
“Regarding Sanju, we are very clear what he has done for India has been phenomenal and sometimes you just 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,” he added.
“International cricket is about results, so whatever we feel is the best combination to give us that result, we play that combination and that playing XI. I’ve always been a big believer that everyone needs to earn their place and the right to play for India,” he concluded.
Samson could score only six runs in three games against Ireland and England combined. Before IPL 2026, he smacked three consecutive half-centuries to propel Team India to the T20 World Cup 2026 title win and was also adjudged the Player of the Tournament.
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