'He ain't Pant'- Danish Kaneria slams Sanju Samson for wasting 'another chance'

Sanju Samson might have made his international debut way back in 2015, but he has not succeeded in cementing his place in the Indian team due to inconsistent performances and cut-throat competition. Commenting on his latest failure, former Pakistani spinner Danish Kaneria said that he wasted a wonderful opportunity of impressing the selectors.

The Kerala cricketer went back to the pavilion for just 12 runs in the first One Day International at the Port of Spain, Trinidad. After being given out lbw off a delivery from Romario Shepherd, he challenged the decision but it was of no use as the umpire’s call came into play.

Since his international debut in 2015, Samson has only managed to play 14 T20Is and two One Day Internationals scoring 251 and 58 runs respectively. While it supposedly might be a bit too late for him to make the cut to the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup in Australia this year, he would be eyeing next year’s ODI World Cup on home soil by showcasing consistent performances in the 50-overs format from here on.

Samson got another chance but he didn’t look special: Danish Kaneria

“Samson got another chance but he didn’t look special. He looked dull before Romario Shepherd got him out. But once again, I will talk about Hooda. Why did he bat down the order? Shreyas and Suryakumar are okay at No. 2 and 3 spots respectively, but Hooda should have come ahead of Samson. India pushed Samson up the order the same way as Rishabh Pant. But Samson ain’t Pant. His batting is completely different,” said Kaneria on his YouTube channel.

Samson is one of the wicketkeepers for this series with regular stumper Rishabh Pant rested as a part of his workload management. Meanwhile, he would now be hoping to make amends in the second game on Sunday, July 24.