Are you making fun of Sanju? Former Indian cricketer lashes out at team selection

MANCHESTER: Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar strongly disagreed with the selectors resting Sanju to include Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the playing eleven in the second T20I against England.

'Happy to see Vaibhav in the Indian jersey. So what about Sanju! Are you making fun of him, or are you dropping him? I think he is injured. Let's hope it is an injury, or else it will be the strangest team selection in history. If Vaibhav was supposed to be included in the team, Sanju could have batted at number three,' Manjrekar wrote on X.

Sanju Samson, the ‘player of the tournament’ who played a crucial role in India's recent T20 World Cup triumph, was dropped from the team's playing XI after struggling to score runs in the three innings (5, 0, 1). Meanwhile, former India batsman Ambati Rayudu also came out in support of the Malayali player. Rayudu said Vaibhav's debut should be celebrated, but not at the expense of forgetting Sanju's contribution to the Indian team.

"It's great to see Vaibhav making his debut. It's something to celebrate, but let's not forget that before these three T20Is, Sanju was the Man of the Tournament in the T20 World Cup. I hope he comes back strong. And I wish Vaibhav a long career of breaking records," Rayudu added.