R Ashwin slams Gautam Gambhir after Sanju Samson snub: Indian cricket team’s veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has expressed strong displeasure over the exclusion of star batsman Sanju Samson, who made India the champion in the T20 World Cup 2026, from the team. Ashwin believes that the players who play an important role in winning the World Cup for the country should get a longer opportunity and clear communication from the team management. Criticizing this decision, Ashwin said that excluding players so soon can spoil the atmosphere of the dressing room and have a deep impact on the confidence of the players.
Ashwin raised questions on Gambhir’s decision
Team India had given a chance to 15-year-old young sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi in place of Sanju Samson in the second T20 match against England. The reason for which was Sanju Samson’s flop in 3 consecutive matches. Raising questions on the team selection process and the attitude of the management, Ashwin said on his YouTube channel, ‘You have two or three series in front of you. The one who plays well will remain in the team. But if someone has won us the World Cup, I would have given him a longer chance. I had said the same thing even when Suryakumar Yadav was dropped. It was right to remove him from the captaincy, but dropping him from the team was probably not the right decision. I would openly tell the players that you should play in these series and secure your place. If you perform, no one can throw you out.
Ashwin believes that due to Samson being out, the batting balance of the team has also been disturbed. He indicated that the coaching staff including coach Gautam Gambhir will soon realize their mistake. Ashwin said, ‘Right now I am worried because Sanju Samson was removed from the team very soon. What might Sanju be thinking at this moment? With what mindset will he practice in the nets? At present the Indian team has three consecutive left-handed batsmen in the top order. I think the team can think of bringing Sanju back to No. 3 to create balance, because the entire coaching staff including Gautam Gambhir knows that it was not fair to Sanju.
Will have a bad effect on the atmosphere of the dressing room.
Ashwin said in a warning tone that frequent changes create a feeling of insecurity within the team. He said, ‘This is not in the interest of the team. If today Sanju is dropped and tomorrow Surya is dropped, then every player will think that I am next. Such an environment can never be considered healthy for any team.
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