Sanju Samson in probables for World Twenty20

Sanju Samson is the only teenager in the list of 30 probables for the ICC World Twenty20 to be played in Bangladesh in March-April. Barely a week after he was retained by Rajasthan Royals, the gifted right-hander from Kerala had another reason to celebrate on Friday. But the youngster was busy training for the upcoming ICC U-19 World Cup. Yes, this is just a provisional list and Samson’s chances of making the final squad of 15 are ‘50-50’, but the fact that he is on the selectors’ radar is good news.

There was no such pleasant surprise for Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and Pathan brothers Yusuf and Irfan. This clearly means that Sandeep Patil & Co are keen on picking some youngsters. However, two other senior players who haven’t been in the best of form did make the cut. Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh, who are both out of the ODI team, should probably consider themselves lucky.

The inclusion of Delhi all-rounder Rajat Bhatia was indeed surprising, but one must hand it to the workhorse for his lion-hearted performances for Kolkata Knight Riders. Young Unmukt Chand was also included. As was Railways leg-spinner Karn Sharma of Sunrisers Hyderabad fame.
Talented batsman Mandeep Singh (Kings XI Punjab) and left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem (Delhi Daredevils) also made the cut.