'Plenty of Cricket to be Played after WC 2023': Aakash Chopra Makes Bold Prediction India Keeper-batter

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posted on 9 months ago — updated on 1 second ago

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Aakash Chopra opined that Sanju Samson is still young at 28 years of age which cannot be said for KL Rahul.

Former Indian cricketer, Aakash Chopra has voiced his doubt on Sanju Samson’s call to the squad for the upcoming World Cup in India. According to him, Samson’s participation in the marquee event will majorly depend on Indian wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul’s fitness who is currently in rehab at the National Cricket Academy (NCA).

While speaking on his YouTube channel Aakash said, “At this point in time if KL Rahul becomes available, I don’t see him [Samson] in the World Cup team. I don’t think he will be seen in the Asia Cup team as well.”

Aakash Chopra added that Sanju Samson is still young at 28 years of age which cannot be said for KL Rahul. The 31-year-old is gradually approaching the twilight of his career and it is highly doubtful if he can keep going until the next World Cup in 2027.

Aakash believed that Samson will still have plenty of opportunities to showcase his talent in the upcoming tournaments. “You have the T20 World Cup next year. Plenty of cricket will be played after that too”, the cricketer-turned-commentator said.

Missing out on the opportunity to start in the first ODI against West Indies, Sanju Samson featured in the second match. He had an underwhelming batting performance that saw him score only nine runs in 19 balls before losing his wicket to Yannic Cariah. India went on to lose the game to the hosts by six wickets. In their third game of the ODI series, Samson belted 51 runs in 48 balls. His innings helped India secure a 200-run against the Windies, winning the series.

Sanju Samson failed to continue his momentum into the T20I series against the West Indies. In their opening game, Samson scored a mere 12 runs in 12 balls before being dismissed by a run-out from Kyle Mayers. India went on to lose the game by four wickets. In the 2nd T20I game, Samson only managed 7 runs in 7 balls as the Windies picked up a second successive victory against the Men in Blue. India managed to keep their series hope alive off a seven-wicket win at the Providence Stadium. Samson did not get the opportunity to bat as Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma stole the show, stitching an 87-run partnership and guiding their side to a victory.