Sanju Samson vs Ishan Kishan: Ashwin calls out 'circus acts' in team selection

NEW DELHI: Whether in the team or out of it, the debate continues to swirl around Sanju Samson, who endured back-to-back failures in the first two T20Is against New Zealand after returning to his opening slot.

Reinstated as opener alongside Abhishek Sharma at the expense of Test and ODI skipper Shubman Gill, Samson has been failing to make the most of his chances and he has got quite a lot of games.

The pressure has mounted on Samson after Ishan Kishan's sensational comeback, reigniting the debate over who should be Abhishek’s preferred opening partner once the injured Tilak Varma returns to the squad.

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However, former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has backed Samson, stressing that the priority should be maintaining a settled and happy dressing room.

He cautioned against constant chopping and changing, urging the team to avoid "circus acts" by picking Sanju when he is in form and then immediately switching to Kishan simply because he is performing well now.

"It's way too early to think of dropping him. If India keeps doing such circus acts by playing Sanju when he did well before, and now Kishan because he's playing well now, I don't have to tell how it'll end for India. It's not ideal inside the dressing room. There is a lot of competition for places, but it's too early for this change," Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.

Ashwin said Samson's recent failures should not be over-analysed, pointing out that both dismissals came while attempting attacking shots against New Zealand's fast bowlers in the opening two matches.

"It'll be very unfair. This opening combination has been reverted only for the last two games. A player has got out playing an attacking shot. If you penalize him for that and bench him, how will you witness the best of that player? It wasn't that there was a rush of blood or that he wasn't calm. He just saw the ball and went for it ( 2nd T20I dismissal). That's how you should instinctively bat, but it just didn't go his way," Ashwin added.