IND vs SL 2021: “Sanju Samson a lazy batsman, had a very casual approach” - Salman Butt unimpressed with Indian batter

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt heavily criticized Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson for failing to grab his opportunities in the T20I series against Sri Lanka. Butt described Samson as a lazy batsman with a very casual approach.

Samson is in the line of fire following yet another failure in the deciding T20I against Sri Lanka. He was out for a duck on Thursday, having scored 27 and 7 in the earlier two matches.

According to Butt, Samson should have taken greater responsibility knowing that there were only five batters in the playing XI owing to the COVID situation in the Indian camp. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Butt opined:

“Sanju Samson seems like a lazy batsman to me. When you know you are not able to pick a bowler (Wanindu Hasaranga), you should keep your pad ahead of the bat and play him out. But still he was trying to play the ball on the back foot and that too across the line. So what happened what that Samson completely missed the ball and was trapped in front. It looked like he had a very casual approach. When you know that there are only five batsmen in the team and you are one of them, and two have already got out, you should have been more careful. But I did not see that effort from Samson.”

Samson has had a forgettable start to his T20I career. After 10 matches, he only has 117 runs to his name at an average of under 12 and a best of 27, which came in the first T20I of the series against Sri Lanka.

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Sanju Samson has not lived up to his reputation: Salman Butt

Analyzing India’s performance in the T20I series, Butt admitted that Devdutt Padikkal and Ruturaj Gaikwad also did not fire. But he went easy on the duo, pointing out that they are fresh to international cricket.

Butt further added that the case was not the same with Samson, who has plenty of experience in domestic cricket as well as the IPL. The former Pakistan batsman explained:

“Devdutt Padikkal and Ruturaj Gaikwad have played only two matches. Obviously, they couldn’t score runs like they have done in the IPL. But they have the potential and they will get a chance to display it on better pitches in the future. As for Sanju Samson, frankly he has not lived up to his reputation. He has just not taken any responsibility. These are moments where you can make your name.”

“The other two players were completely new at the international stage. But Sanju Samson has been playing domestic cricket for 7-8 seasons and has been part of the IPL for so many seasons. When you are such an established name, you need to do something to prove yourself at the big stage. If he had grabbed this opportunity, it would have been remembered forever,” Butt concluded.

Samson was trapped lbw by Hasaranga in the fifth over of the innings. His dismissal left India reeling at 24 for 3 and they eventually only managed 81 for 8. Sri Lanka thumped India by seven wickets to claim a famous series victory.