T20 World Cup 2022: "The truth is that he was not part of this race at all" - Aakash Chopra on Sanju Samson's non-selection in India's squad

Aakash Chopra has said that Sanju Samson's non-selection in India's squad for the T20 World Cup to be played in Australia later this year did not take him by surprise.

The selectors picked the 15-member Indian squad for the global event on Monday, September 12. Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik are the two wicketkeeper-batters, with KL Rahul also capable of performing the role.

While reviewing the selection in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra opined that Samson was never in contention. He said:

"I don't think anyone has been left out in the batting. There have been tweets only for Sanju Samson since the time the squad has come, about where is Sanju and that his performances have been much better than the others. The truth is that he was not part of this race at all."

While acknowledging that the Kerala wicketkeeper-batter's non-selection might have hurt the fans, Chopra pointed out that it was on the expected lines. The former India opener elaborated:

"If someone was not part of this race, he had no chance of coming into this team. So I am not surprised that Sanju is not there here. You shouldn't be surprised either even if you are slightly hurt. This is how the selection is generally done. You don't want to put any wildcard entries."

Samson was not part of the Indian squad for the recently concluded Asia Cup 2022. He did give a decent account of himself in the limited-overs series against West Indies and Zimbabwe but has rarely featured in a full-strength Indian squad.

---

"Predictability makes the selection better" - Aakash Chopra on the choice of batters in India's squad

KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma are expected to open the batting in Australia.

Chopra praised the selectors for sticking with the batting lineup picked for the Asia Cup. He explained:

"The batting lineup that was chosen for the Asia Cup, there are no injury concerns, so you have picked the same team for the World Cup - makes absolute sense. Predictability makes the selection better. If outsiders get that realization, it's not a bad thing."

Chopra also named the top six the Men in Blue are likely to field in the World Cup. The reputed commentator observed:

"The stability is seen in the batting. Rahul and Rohit will open, you will see Kohli at three and Suryakumar Yadav at four. After that, you will see two out of Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik and Rishabh Pant playing."

Hardik Pandya will likely be a certain pick in India's playing XI, subject to his fitness. The team management will have to choose between Pant and Karthik for the wicketkeeper-batter's position.