According to a Times of India report, Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson’s decision to skip the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Kerala could hurt his chances of being selected for the Champions Trophy. The BCCI has made it clear that players must participate in domestic cricket when not representing India. As a result, the selection committee is unhappy with Samson’s choice to miss the tournament. Samson was not included in the Kerala squad after he told the association he would be unavailable for the camp before the competition.
“The selectors and the board have been very clear on the importance of domestic cricket. Last year, Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer lost central contracts for missing domestic matches without seeking permission. Even in Samson’s case, the board and selectors were not given any reason why he missed the tournament. All that is known so far is that he spends much of his time in Dubai,” BCCI sources informed The Times of India.
A PTI report also supported this, mentioning that the top three wicket-keeper options for the Champions Trophy are Samson, Dhruv Jurel, and Rishabh Pant. However, Pant and Jurel are ahead, given Samson’s absence from domestic cricket.
“The selectors would want a valid reason. Otherwise, it will be difficult to consider him for the ODI season. Samson has had a bitter history with the KCA, but that needs to be sorted out for him to play domestic cricket. It cannot be that the state association and him have a misunderstanding and he misses out on game time,” the source told.
A PTI report also said that the top three wicket-keeper options for the Champions Trophy are Samson, Dhruv Jurel, and Rishabh Pant. However, Pant and Jurel are ahead because Samson has not played domestic cricket.
“In the case of keeper’s slot, Rishabh Pant is the first choice by a country mile but the second keeper’s slot could be a three-way fight between Dhruv Jurel, Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan. As of now, it looks like Jurel could win the battle.”
“Samson could lose out as he decided to skip the Vijay Hazare Trophy,” the report mentioned.
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