Vishwanath Samson, father of India wicketkeeper Sanju Samson, has leveled serious allegations against prominent figures in Indian cricket such as Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Rahul Dravid, and Rohit Sharma, claiming they have squandered a decade of his son’s career by failing to provide him with regular chances on the international stage.
Samson is currently in South Africa, playing in the ongoing four-match T20I series. In the first match of the series, he made a century but then registered a duck in the next game.
In a recent conversation with a news platform from Kerala, Media One, Vishwanath Samson voiced his disappointment regarding what he perceives as ten years of missed chances for his son.
He particularly highlighted former captains MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma, along with former coach Rahul Dravid, claiming that their choices had impeded Sanju’s international career. “There are 3-4 individuals who squandered a decade of my son’s important career… leaders such as Dhoni ji, Virat [Kohli] ji, Rohit [Sharma] ji, and coach [Rahul] Dravid ji,” he remarked, stating that they had “ruined 10 years of my son’s life.”
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Alongside criticising the present and former Indian team leadership, Samson’s father also targeted ex-cricketer Kris Srikkanth. Vishwanath charged Srikkanth with downplaying Sanju’s accomplishments, especially his first T20I century versus Bangladesh.
“What truly pained me was the remarks made by [Kris] Srikkanth, the player from Tamil Nadu,” he stated. “Who did Sanju score a century against? It was simply Bangladesh. A century is a century, yet that player has managed to score just 26 runs versus Bangladesh. Sanju has made a century, and he plays with a classical style reminiscent of Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid. At the very least, honor that,” he said.