"Mera bhai aa gaya" - Sanju Samson delighted as he reunites with RR's retained pacer ahead of IPL 2025 [Watch]

Rajasthan Royals (RR) skipper Sanju Samson was visibly happy on seeing veteran pacer Sandeep Sharma during the team's practice session ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) season. The RR captain joined the camp on Monday, March 17.

Samson was seen standing with Yashasvi Jaiswal when Sharma walked towards him. The wicketkeeper-batter was delighted to reunite with the bowler, saying:

"Mera bhai aa gaya [My brother is here]."

Sharma impressed many with his bowling exploits in the previous season. He picked up 13 wickets from 10 outings at an economy rate of 8.18. The new IPL retention rules allowed the inaugural champions to retain the seamer as an uncapped player at ₹4 crore.

Samson sustained a finger injury while batting during India's final T20I of the five-match home series against England last month. He underwent surgery and completed rehabilitation at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.

---

"Sanju Samson is T20's present and future" - Aakash Chopra on RR squad for IPL 2025

Commenting on RR's strengths, former India opener Aakash Chopra opined that the side have Sanju Samson in their ranks, who is the present and future of T20s. He also pointed out that Rajasthan boasts many promising Indian batters like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel and Riyan Parag in their lineup.

Speaking about the team's batting unit, Chopra said in his YouTube video:

"They have the Indian team's present and future. Sanju Samson is T20's present and future. Yashasvi Jaiswal is your present and future in Tests. Dhruv Jurel is the future. You can look towards Riyan Parag from that point of view.

"So the Indian batters they have are all very, very promising, and that is thumbs up with both hands. They are very good. They have little international experience, but they are primarily young. I won't say they are inexperienced but they are not major superstars. All of them are hungry. They are all promising and young."

Sanju Samson and Co. will take on SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their opening match of IPL 2025. The afternoon game will be played at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday, March 23.