‘He can still come back’: Gautam Gambhir breaks his silence on Sanju Samson

India’s Sanju Samsaon with head coach Gautam Gambhir (PTI Photo) India head coach Gautam Gambhir has addressed the growing debate over Sanju Samson’s absence from the T20I side, insisting that the wicket-keeper batsman remains in the team’s plans despite being left out during the ongoing series against England. Samson’s omission became one of the biggest talking points after India slumped to a record 125-run defeat against England in the third T20I at Trent Bridge on Tuesday. The wicketkeeper-batsman, who was India’s player of the tournament during their successful defense of the T20 World Cup title, was dropped for the second T20I, did not feature in the third match and was also left out of the squad for the Zimbabwe tour. After India’s defeat, Gambhir revealed that he had already spoken to Samson about his role in the team, making it clear that those discussions would remain private. “The first thing is that in terms of the clarity that Sanju Samson needed, that has been provided to him from my side. That is a conversation between the player and the head coach exclusively. That conversation will not come out,” Gambhir said. The India coach stressed that Samson’s contributions have not been overlooked, but said current form will continue to influence selection decisions. “As for Sanju, we are very clear what he has done for India has been phenomenal and sometimes you just look at the form of a certain player. There is no hard and fast rule that he cannot come back in this series.” Gambhir also defended India’s selection policy, saying that every player must continue to earn their place in the national team. “International cricket is about results, so whatever we feel is the best combination to give us that result, we play that combination and that XI. I’ve always been a big believer that everyone needs to earn their place and the right to play for India.” India’s defeat at Trent Bridge was their heaviest defeat in T20 Internationals. Chasing 202, the visitors were bowled out for just 76 in 11.4 overs after teenage opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi fell for 13. The collapse gave England a 125-run victory and a 2-0 lead in the five-match series after the opening match was washed out. The result also extended India’s run in the format, with the reigning World T20 champions now having lost their last four completed T20Is following the 2-0 series defeat in Ireland. Captain Shreyas Iyer described the batting as “brutal” and admitted that the team had to “completely go back to the drawing board” after the heavy defeat.