‘Sanju Samson good enough, why are they taking Rajat Patidar?’: Ex-NZ star slams India's squad for Bangladesh ODIs

Sharing his views on Sanju Samson's omission from the India ODI squad for Bangladesh tour, former New Zealand cricketer Simon Doull backed the Rajasthan Royals skipper, and argued Samson could have been selected in place of Rajat Patidar.

After engaging in a limited-overs series against New Zealand, Team India are ready for their next assignment, where they will meet Bangladesh for a three-match each ODI and a two-match Test series. The Men in Blue left for Bangladesh earlier on Thursday and the action gets underway from Sunday.

The first of three ODIs will be played in Dhaka as senior pro Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli return to the squad. KL Rahul, who was rested for the New Zealand series, also makes a return. However, Sanju Samson's wait for game time extends as the Kerala wicketkeeper-batter is not a part of the 17-member squad.

Samson traveled to New Zealand but featured in only one game in the six matches, four of which were affected by rain during the course of the T20I and ODI series. Sharing his views on Samson's omission, former New Zealand cricketer Simon Doull backed the Rajasthan Royals skipper, and argued Samson could have been selected in place of Rajat Patidar.

"I mean I know they loved Rajat Patidar and I look at it, I think okay that’s fine, but there is a plethora of batters that you know. Sanju Samson is good enough to play and they are leaving him out. Why are they taking Rajat Patidar?" Doull noted during an interaction on Cricbuzz.

Patidar, who is yet to make his India debut, earned his maiden ODI call-up during the South Africa ODIs, which were played ahead of the T20 World Cup. However, the Madhya Pradesh batter didn't earn an India cap then and will hope for a change in fortune this time around.

Meanwhile, Samson has been in and out of the Indian team but has got very minimal game time. Many fans and experts have backed Samson and support for the Kerala batter was also visible during the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2022.