Overview
- On Sunday, former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin replied to a fan who criticised Sanju Samson on X with the line, "Sanju mera first-choice, tumhara full-time obsession," and the post quickly went viral.
- Samson finished the five-match T20I series against New Zealand with scores of 67, 14, 18, 4 and 4 and was dismissed for four in the series-deciding fifth match.
- India won the first three T20Is before New Zealand won the last two, leaving the series 3-2 in India's favour and adding context to the scrutiny of individual performances.
- Vaibhav Sooryavanshi featured in two games as a replacement for an unfit Ishan Kishan and produced scores of 4 and 45, prompting calls on social media for him to get more top-order chances.
- Ashwin's public defence draws on his past IPL ties with Samson at Rajasthan Royals and it may shape public and selector conversations about whether to persist with Samson or trial younger options.