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Want my son to be given a fair chance to play: Sanju Samson's father
Follow UsThe wicketkeeper-batter missed out on India selection as he did not play for Kerala in the Vijay Hazare Trophy
Despite scoring a century in his last One-Day International (ODI) and T20 International (T20I), Sanju Samson was not named in the 15-member squad for the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant were preferred ahead of him in the wicketkeeping department.
Samson's decision to skip playing in the Vijay Hazare Trophy apparently did not go down well with chief selector Ajit Agarkar. Samson initially said that he was not available for the camp ahead of the domestic tournament but then made himself available before the tournament.
The Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) did not take to this too kindly and Samson was not picked for the 50-over tournament. Sanju Samson's father, Samson Viswanath has lashed out at the KCA, indicating that they are targetting his son for no good reason and wants him to be given a fair chance.
Also Read - Sanju Samson can't turn up for Kerala only when he wants: KCA President
“There are people within KCA who have something against my child, we’ve never spoken out against the association before, but this time, it’s become too much. Sanju isn’t the only one who didn’t attend the camp, yet other players in the same situation were allowed to play,” Samson's father Viswanath was quoted as saying by Mathrubhumi English.
Viswanath is keen to bridge any differences between KCA and Samson which would allow him to return to competitive cricket and go on to play for his country again.
“It’s not about Jayesh George [KCA president] or Vinod S Kumar [Board Secretary]; it’s some small people in between who turn everything into poison over trivial matters, We are sportsmen, not interested in the business of sports. All I want is for my son to be given a fair chance to play. If there’s any mistake, we’re open to discussion and ready to fix it,” he added.
Samson's axe from the India squad also irked prominent Kerala politician Shashi Tharoor, who blamed KCA for the 30-year-old's omission.
“The sorry saga of the Kerala Cricket Association and Sanju Samson -- the player wrote to KCA, in advance, regretting his inability to attend a training camp between the SMA and the Vijay Hazare Trophy tournaments and was promptly dropped from the squad -- has now resulted in Sanju's exclusion from the Indian team," Tharoor wrote on X.
India kick start their Champions Trophy campaign against Bangladesh on February 20 in Dubai.