Given Rishabh Pant's ongoing recovery, it is time to give Sanju Samson an extended opportunity in ODIs: Irfan Pathan

Sanju Samson is one of those cricketers who have never been regular in the Indian white-ball team. After being made to warm the bench in the New Zealand series last year, the stumper-batter was dropped from the Bangladesh series, which raised quite a few eyebrows, with social media buzzing and his fans criticising the selection committee. 

However, times have changed as after having a decent IPL, the cricketer has once again made it to the national squad for the upcoming ODI series against West Indies. Meanwhile, former India international Irfan Pathan has said that since Rishabh Pant is currently injured, Samson should get regular opportunities in the ODI squad and not just in here and there. He lauded the Kerala-born cricketer as a fantastic player of spin and believes that he could prove to be a valuable addition to the Indian team in the coming times.

“Given Pant's ongoing recovery, it's time to give Sanju Samson an extended opportunity in one day cricket. With his skills as a proficient middle-order wicketkeeper-batsman and excellent spin-playing abilities, he could prove to be a valuable addition,” Pathan tweeted on Friday, June 23.

Given Pant's ongoing recovery, it's time to give Sanju Samson an extended opportunity in one day cricket. With his skills as a proficient middle-order wicketkeeper-batsman and excellent spin-playing abilities, he could prove to be a valuable addition. #INDvWI

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) June 23, 2023

No signs of Shreyas Iyer; Jasprit Bumrah likely to return from Ireland series

Shreyas Iyer, one of India’s most impactful players in 2022, has been out injured for quite a long time as he missed the recently concluded IPL, WTC final and will also be missing the upcoming series against West Indies.

There is no confirmation regarding his possible return as the player is currently at the NCA, working on his fitness. He, however, is expected to hit the field soon in order to get ready for the upcoming ODI World Cup. Meanwhile, ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah is likely to make his return to the national squad in the forthcoming Ireland series, depending on how quickly he recovers from his stress fracture.