India will begin their Asia Cup campaign against the United Arab Emirates on September 10.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav has broken his silence about prolific batter Sanju Samson’s place in India’s first match at the Asia Cup 2025 against UAE at Dubai International Stadium on Wednesday, September 10.
Samson’s place in India’s T20I playing XI came in danger after Shubman Gill came back into the fray for the opening spot after a year and was named vice-captain of the team.
When asked about who India’s first choice wicketkeeper will be, the Indian skipper said, “We are actually taking good care of Sanju, don’t worry, we will make the right decision tomorrow.”
The Kerala batter has been impressive the past year for India in T20Is and scored three hundreds in a span of five innings.
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Jitesh Sharma earned his place back in the T20I setup after playing a key role in Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) maiden IPL title triumph. Batting at no.6, Jitesh amassed 261 runs in 11 innings in the IPL 2025, averaging 37.28 while striking at 176.25. He won a couple of games single handedly and provided the final boosts to innings when needed.
On the other hand, Samson had a modest IPL season and missed five games due to injury. In three out of nine matches he featured in IPL 2025, the Rajasthan Royals skipper played as an Impact Player and didn’t take field. The 30-year-old scored 285 runs in nine games of the IPL 2025, averaging 35.62 and a modest strike rate of 140.39.
Many expect that Gill, being a vice-captain, might get a direct entry in the playing XI while Samson will miss out or bat in the middle order, where the Kerala batter will have to compete with Jitesh Sharma.
Samson, who bats at three for Rajasthan Royals (RR) and opens for India, might have to sit out due to lack match-finishing experience. He tried himself at the middle-order in the first match of the Kerala Cricket League (KCL), where he faltered. His best came when he opened the innings and finished the season with 368 runs, averaging a whopping 73.60 and impressive 186.80 strike rate. Plus his record at no. 5 to no. 7 are quite horrible. He has scored 62 runs in five innings, averaging just 20.66 at no.5, and scored 12 and 19 in lone innings at no.6 and no. 7 respectively.
India will begin their Asia Cup campaign against the United Arab Emirates on September 10. The Suryakumar Yadav-led side will face arch-rivals Pakistan and Oman in their next two fixtures on September 14 and 19, respectively.
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