Sanju Samson will not represent Kerala in the initial rounds in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
After leading Kerala in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament, India wicket-keeper Sanju Samson has not been named in the squad for the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy, starting December 21.
Samson-led Kerala finished third in their group stage campaign of the SMAT 2024 season, behind Andhra and Mumbai in Group E matches held in Hyderabad last month. After coming off a roller-coaster South Africa T20I series where he scored two hundreds and as many ducks, Samson opened the SMAT season with a 75 against Services. Samson totalled 61 in his next four innings as Kerala narrowly missed out on a knockout spot.
When quizzed about Samson’s absence, a Kerala Cricket Association official confirmed that the senior batter “has opted out of the tournament for now”. It is unclear whether the wicket-keeper batter will join the side later.
Samson’s last 50-over assignment came in India colours during the tour to South Africa in December 2023. Samson scored his maiden hundred in the series-decider against the Proteas, setting up a 78-run win for India. The Rajasthan Royals captain is also Kerala’s third-highest run-scorer in List A cricket, holding a career-best of 212.
With both Samson and injured Sachin Baby missing out, Kerala have named in-form Salman Nazar as captain for the tournament. Kerala is slotted in Elite Group E, with matches scheduled to be held in Hyderabad. Bengal, Tripura, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Baroda and Bihar are the other teams in Group E.
The group stages of the tournament will be held between December 21 and January 5, 2025. The knockout rounds will be in Vadodara.
Kerala Vijay Hazare Trophy squad: Salman Nizar (c), Rohan Kunnummal, Shoun Roger, Anand Krishnan, Krishna Prasad, A Imran, Jalaj Saxena, A Sarvate, Sijomon J, Basil Thampi, Basil NP, Nidheesh MT, Edhen Tom, Sharafudeen, A Scaria, Vishweshwar, Vaisakh Chandran, Ajnas M (wk).
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