"Don't say Virat Kohli also got out in the slips 8 times" - Aakash Chopra on Sanju Samson's similar mode of dismissals in IND vs ENG 2025 T20Is

Former India player Aakash Chopra has noted that Sanju Samson's similar mode of dismissals in the recently concluded T20I series against England needs to be discussed. He opined that the Kerala wicketkeeper-batter's fans should not complain about Virat Kohli getting caught behind the wickets throughout the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25, highlighting that those dismissals were also debated a lot.

Samson scored 16 runs off seven deliveries as India set England a massive 248-run target in the fifth T20I in Mumbai on Sunday, February 2. The Men in Blue then bowled Jos Buttler and company out for 97 to register a resounding 150-run win and complete a 4-1 series victory.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener cited Kohli's example to point out that Samson's shortcoming against the short ball needed to be analyzed.

"How can we not talk about Sanju Samson? You will have to talk about him. He got out the same way five times in five matches. How is that even possible? Sometimes you feel it cannot happen at all," he said (11:05).

"Don't say Virat Kohli also got out in the slips eight times. That was also discussed. There were threadbare discussions. A lot of views were shared and it was analyzed. Sanju - whoever comes, bowls a short ball and he gets out in the deep," Chopra added.

All five of Sanju Samson's dismissals in the T20I series against England were to short balls. While the opener played pull shots straight down the deep square leg fielders' throats on four occasions, he was caught at mid-on once.

---

"It is worrying" - Aakash Chopra on Sanju Samson's short-ball problem

Sanju Samson aggregated 51 runs at an average of 10.20 in the five T20Is against England. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra opined that Sanju Samson's game against the short ball was an area of concern.

"He hit a six off the first ball this time, that he would do something different. Then he hit another and swung the bat again, and got caught in the end. I don't know how the Indian team is seeing this development, but, in my opinion, it is worrying. There is a problem and that needs addressing," he said (11:35).

The cricketer-turned-commentator added that Suryakumar Yadav repeatedly getting out while attempting scoop shots was equally concerning.

"Suryakumar Yadav's story is also the same. Out of five, three or four times he got out while playing the scoop. That is not right. It will get covered up because we won but both Sanju and Suryakumar Yadav had an extremely poor series, and that in my humble opinion, is a bit of a worrying sign," Chopra elaborated.

Suryakumar managed 28 runs at a dismal average of 5.60 in the five T20Is against England. He had a top score of 14 and was dismissed for a duck on two occasions.