‘Career destroyed by egos’: Sanju Samson’s Champions Trophy 2025 snub leaves Shashi Tharoor fuming

Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor has lashed out at the Kerala Cricket Association and the BCCI after Sanju Samson was excluded from the Men in Blue's 15 man squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025. Notably, Samson's recent performances for India in the white ball format had made a case for him to play the Champions Trophy but the selectors ulimately chose the familiarity that Rishabh Pant offers.

Shashi Tharoor slams KCA and BCCI:

In a post on X, Tharoor wrote, "The sorry saga of the Kerala Cricket Association and Sanju Samson -- the player wrote to KCA, in advance, regretting his inability to attend a training camp between the SMA and the Vijay Hazare Trophy tournaments, and was promptly dropped from the squad -- has now resulted in Sanju's exclusion from the Indian team," Tharoor wrote on X.

"A batsman who has a highest score of 212* in the Hazare, who averages 56.66 in ODIs for India (including a century in his last outing, against South Africa) is having his career destroyed by the egos of cricket administrators. Doesn't it bother the KCA bosses that by leaving Sanju out, they ensured Kerala didn't even reach the quarter-finals of the Hazare? Where does this leave him?" the Lok Sabha MP added.

Sanju Samson's ODI record vs Sanju Samson's ODI record:

In the 16 international ODI matches played so far, Samson has scored 510 runs at a healthy average of 56.66 and a strike rate of 99.60. The Kerala-based batter also has a century and three half-centuries against his name.

Meanwhile, Rishabh Pant has played 31 ODI matches so far, scoring 871 runs at an average of 33.50 and a strike rate of 106.21. The left-handed batter has scored a century and five half-centuries.

Why Sanju Samson was ignored?

One of the major reasons for Samson's omission that might have played in selectors' minds was the fact that he skipped the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Kerala, which is a 50-over domestic tournament. The last time Samson was seen on a cricket field was during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy on December 3, 2024.

Had Samson played in Vijay Hazare Trophy, there could have been an outside chance for the Kerala star. Notably, Samson's last 50-over game for any side came on December 21, 2023 against South Africa.