"2 of my favorites" - Sanju Samson poses with MS Dhoni and Jos Buttler in Mumbai

Team India cricketer Sanju Samson recently posed with MS Dhoni and England white-ball cricket team captain Jos Buttler during his time in Mumbai.

Samson is not part of the Indian World Cup squad, as the selectors preferred Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan over him. He performed well in the ODI format for India over the past two years and boasts a decent record.

Across 13 ODIs, Sanju Samson scored 390 runs at an impressive average of 55.71 and a strike rate of 104, including three half-centuries.

However, his consistent performances did not earn him a spot in the full-strength team. Selectors snubbed him for the Asia Cup and then for the World Cup squad. Many fans were not pleased with the selectors' decision and slammed them on social media platforms. But more was to come.

The selectors chose a second-string side for the Asian Games, where the team won a gold medal earlier this month. Sanju Samson was not even selected in that squad, much to the disappointment of many.

Samson is currently in Mumbai to participate in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2023. He is leading the Kerala side in the tournament. They will face Bihar on Thursday (October 19) at the DY Patil Stadium.

On Wednesday (October 18), Samson took to his Instagram handle to share a couple of pictures, in which he can be seen posing with MS Dhoni and Jos Buttler, who are also in Mumbai. He captioned the post:

"2 of my favourites 🤗🤗"

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"He hasn't got a long rope from the selectors" - Saba Karim on Sanju Samson

Former India cricketer and selector Saba Karim recently expressed his sympathy with Sanju Samson and analyzed the reasons behind his non-selection for the World Cup.

The former India wicketkeeper reckoned that KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan are clearly ahead in the pecking order as wicketkeeper-batters. During a discussion on JioCinema, Karim said:

"It is a tough phase for Sanju Samson. Let us admit that first, because now it seems in the pecking order you have KL Rahul, then you have Ishan Kishan, and then comes Samson. It's also the way he looks at his future in international cricket. Does he look at himself as a wicketkeeper-batter or does he think of himself as a batter? The kind of potential he has, everybody knows he is so gifted."

He added:

"At times, there has been some kind of question mark over his consistency. Having said that, I do believe that he hasn't got a long rope from the selectors due to different circumstances."

Do you agree with Saba Karim's views above? Let us know in the comments section.