Gautam Gambhir consoles Sanju Samson in long chat after dropping star from T20I team
IND vs ENG: India head coach Gautam Gambhir was seen having a long chat with star opener Sanju Samson during India's 2nd T20I against England. The team management decided to rest Samson after three straight failures and give his spot to the prodigiously talented Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
India decided to rest Sanju Samson for the second T20I against England on Saturday, July 4, in Manchester. After three consecutive poor outings from the T20 World Cup-winning opener, the team management handed the spot to the generational talent Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who had been called up for the tour of the United Kingdom.
Samson, who played crucial knocks for India during their triumphant T20 World Cup 2026 campaign, was left out just days after the team management had said they wanted to give their opening pair a long rope because they had earned it.
After the decision was made ahead of the second T20I, India head coach Gautam Gambhir was seen having a long conversation with Samson. Gambhir appeared to console the batter, holding his hand as the two spoke following the selection call.
SAMSON'S STRING OF POOR SCORES
Samson did not leave the Indian team management with many options. The opener failed to reach double figures in each of his last three T20I innings on the tour of the United Kingdom. After scores of 0 and 5 in India's historic series defeat against Ireland, Samson managed just one run off seven balls in the first T20I against England.
With fans increasingly calling for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's inclusion, the management eventually made the change. Samson's omission paved the way for the 15-year-old to make his international debut. Vaibhav scored 14 off 10 balls in his first outing for India.
However, being rested for the second T20I does not necessarily signal the end of the road for Samson. The Indian team management has repeatedly spoken about backing players over a longer period as they build a new-look T20 side under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer.
INDIA FALTER IN VAIBHAV'S DEBUT
The exclusion of Sanju Samson did little to change India's fortunes under Shreyas Iyer. India are still searching for their first T20I win under Iyer's captaincy after suffering another defeat.
On Saturday, India posted a competitive 190 in Manchester, but the total proved insufficient. Harry Brook and Jacob Bethell led England's chase with commanding knocks as the hosts sealed a four-wicket win with six balls to spare.
India decided to rest Sanju Samson for the second T20I against England on Saturday, July 4, in Manchester. After three consecutive poor outings from the T20 World Cup-winning opener, the team management handed the spot to the generational talent Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who had been called up for the tour of the United Kingdom.
Samson, who played crucial knocks for India during their triumphant T20 World Cup 2026 campaign, was left out just days after the team management had said they wanted to give their opening pair a long rope because they had earned it.
After the decision was made ahead of the second T20I, India head coach Gautam Gambhir was seen having a long conversation with Samson. Gambhir appeared to console the batter, holding his hand as the two spoke following the selection call.
SAMSON'S STRING OF POOR SCORES
Samson did not leave the Indian team management with many options. The opener failed to reach double figures in each of his last three T20I innings on the tour of the United Kingdom. After scores of 0 and 5 in India's historic series defeat against Ireland, Samson managed just one run off seven balls in the first T20I against England.
With fans increasingly calling for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's inclusion, the management eventually made the change. Samson's omission paved the way for the 15-year-old to make his international debut. Vaibhav scored 14 off 10 balls in his first outing for India.
However, being rested for the second T20I does not necessarily signal the end of the road for Samson. The Indian team management has repeatedly spoken about backing players over a longer period as they build a new-look T20 side under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer.
INDIA FALTER IN VAIBHAV'S DEBUT
The exclusion of Sanju Samson did little to change India's fortunes under Shreyas Iyer. India are still searching for their first T20I win under Iyer's captaincy after suffering another defeat.
On Saturday, India posted a competitive 190 in Manchester, but the total proved insufficient. Harry Brook and Jacob Bethell led England's chase with commanding knocks as the hosts sealed a four-wicket win with six balls to spare.
