‘Leave Sanju Samson out’: Indian coach confirms why Vaibhav Sooryavan…

Ireland had just completed one of the biggest victories in their cricket history. Perhaps a watershed moment for them. India have been humbled after getting beaten 2-0. Ireland have ended India’s 16-series unbeaten run in T20Is, and questions are flying in every direction. beltedkingfisher.blog

Why did the batting collapse? Why did the world champions look so uncomfortable? And perhaps the most asked question of all is why didn’t Vaibhav Sooryavanshi get a game?

The 15-year-old spent the entire tour carrying drinks, signing autographs and attracting more attention than most players in the playing XI. This series’ hype was carried by Sooryavanshi, whose name was used umpteen times by broadcasters and media. Yet when India handed out debut caps in Belfast, they went to Prince Yadav and Suryansh Shedge, not the teenager many fans had travelled to see.

The Indian team was adamant that you wouldn’t straightaway walk into the side and disturb an already settled balance. This Gautam Gambhir-led management believes in giving players enough time. This is something we saw in the Test setup as well, when the head coach publicly backed Sai Sudharsan for the number three spot despite some questions asked with Devdutt Padikkal’s presence. Yet, India persisted with Sudharsan, stating that he deserves more chances.

No panic decisions on Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

The Indian selectors have fast-tracked Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for a reason. Sooryavanshi’s IPL 2026 season felt like something out of a video game. The Rajasthan Royals opener smashed 776 runs in 16 innings, won the Orange Cap, Player of the Tournament and Emerging Player awards; and did it at an unbelievable strike rate of 237.30. He cleared the ropes 72 times, the most by any batter in a single T20 tournament.

He was hitting sixes in his own command. Take the game against LSG for an example. Before the match, Sooryavanshi told his teammates that he would hit 13 sixes. Guess what? He managed to hammer ten and it led Kumar Sangakkara to share a brilliant story with us.

As if that wasn’t enough, he then blasted the fastest fifty in List A history, reaching the landmark in just 11 balls for India A against Sri Lanka A. The numbers made his selection impossible to ignore. Yet India didn’t consider reshuffling their batting order to fit him in.

Part of that comes down to reputation. Abhishek Sharma remains the No. 1-ranked T20I batter in the world. Ishan Kishan has struck at nearly 192 in T20 cricket this year. And despite his miserable Ireland tour, Sanju Samson was one of the biggest architects of India’s T20 World Cup triumph only three months ago.

That’s why one bad series wasn’t enough to trigger panic. Even though Samson returned scores of 5, 0 and 0, and India lost both matches, the management believes players who helped deliver a World Cup deserve more than two games before being judged.

The question that every ICT fan is asking #VaibhavSooryavanshi #IndianCricket #T20I #Insidesport #CricketTwitter pic.twitter.com/IVbCOnAd8x

— InsideSport (@InsideSportIND) June 29, 2026

Ryan ten Doeschate makes India’s stance crystal clear

Assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate finally addressed the issue after the series defeat.

“He’s absolutely ready to play international cricket, there’s no doubt about that,” ten Doeschate said.

But the coach quickly explained why readiness alone isn’t enough. “But also, I think it’s not a question to say you can leave Sanju Samson out. A guy who went a long way to winning India the World Cup three months ago. A guy who’s had a fairly good IPL [Samson scored two hundreds for Chennai Super Kings].”

The former Netherlands international stressed that India want to send a stable message inside the dressing room. “It’s important in terms of giving players confidence, and the message we’re sending to players. We want to give guys a long run in the team.”

Ten Doeschate then gave away something that many Sooryavanshi’s fans didn’t want to hear. The Indian assisntant coach said that as much as ecxiting it is to see the talented youngster play, he needs to bide his time and wait.

“So, you know, as ready as Vaibhav is and as excited as we are and you are to see him play, he’s going to have to go through the same process as everyone else and, you know, bide his time and wait. But certainly no questions about how good he is and how ready he is.”

India clearly believe Sooryavanshi is ready. What they don’t believe is that a couple of failures from established players should suddenly push them out of the queue. Hence, Sooryavanshi might not start again in the upcoming T20Is against England, starting July 1.

The post ‘Leave Sanju Samson out’: Indian coach confirms why Vaibhav Sooryavanshi didn’t play IND vs IRE T20Is appeared first on Inside Sport India.

Belfast [Ireland], June 29 (ANI): India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate has backed 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as being absolutely ready for international cricket, while stressing the need for continuity and patience in team selection following India’s 2-0 T20I series whitewash to Ireland, reported Cricinfo.

Speaking after the Men in Blue were whitewashed, ten Doeschate said there was no doubt about Sooryavanshi’s potential at the highest level, but added that he would have to wait for his opportunity.

“He’s absolutely ready to play international cricket, there’s no doubt about that," ten Doeschate said, as quoted by Cricinfo.

Sooryavanshi was fast-tracked into the national T20I side after a spectacular IPL 2026 season, where he finished with the Player of the Tournament honours for his 776 runs in 16 innings, scored at 237.30.

The national selectors said he had forced their hand with his outrageous talent and performances, but the team management has not been as quick to put him into the first XI during their shock series defeat to Ireland.

However, the India assistant coach underlined that experienced players such as Sanju Samson could not be overlooked, citing their recent contributions.

“But also, I think it’s not a question to say you can leave Sanju Samson out. A guy who went a long way to winning India the World Cup three months ago. A guy who’s had a fairly good IPL," he said.

Ten Doeschate further emphasised the importance of maintaining a stable dressing room environment and giving players an extended run in the side.

“It’s important in terms of giving players confidence, and the message we’re sending to players. We want to give guys a long run in the team," he said.

He added that despite the excitement around Sooryavanshi, the young batter must follow the same pathway as others in the setup.

“As ready as Vaibhav is and as excited as we are and you are to see him play, he’s going to have to go through the same process as everyone else and bide his time and wait," he said.

“But certainly no questions about how good he is and how ready he is," ten Doeschate added.

The series triumph marked Ireland’s first-ever series victory over India in any format. In the process, they not only defeated the reigning T20 World Cup champions but also ended India’s remarkable 16-series winning streak in T20Is.

Chasing 155 in a must-win contest, India fell just short, finishing on 153/9 to lose by one run. Earlier, despite a superb spell from Prince Yadav (3/22), who helped restrict Ireland to 154/8, India’s batters could not get the job done. (ANI)

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Houston [US], June 29 (ANI): Ahead of Japan’s FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 32 clash against Brazil, veteran Yuto Nagatomo said he believes his country has made greater strides over the past two decades and is steadily closing the gap on the five-time world champions.

Speaking to Japan’s news outlet Kyodo News, Nagatomo said Japan’s rate of improvement has outpaced Brazil’s in recent years.

The former Inter Milan fullback gave his views as the team departed their base camp near Nashville, Tennessee, which he called the most comfortable he has had in his five World Cups.

“If we’re talking about these past 10, 20 years, I think Japan have upped their level more than Brazil have," Nagatomo was quoted as saying by Kyodo News.

“It’s not whether Brazil have upped theirs or not, I simply believe that our margin of improvement is bigger. I’ve felt we’re closing the gap on them," he added.

The experienced fullback also reflected on Japan’s dramatic Round of 16 exit to Belgium at the 2018 FIFA World Cup, where the Samurai Blue squandered a two-goal lead to lose 3-2.

“We just relied on our momentum against Belgium," he said. “Even when we were 2-0 up, we kept going forward and no one was trying to see the game out. There wasn’t anyone speaking out either."

Nagatomo stressed that game management and composure are crucial for teams hoping to make deep runs at major tournaments.

“In that sense, you need smartness and calmness and guile as well I suppose to go deep in tournaments. You need to know how you want the game to play out, whether to finish it in 90 minutes or go to extra time and penalties. Having that uniform idea within the team is extremely important," he said.

Earlier, Nagatomo created history on Thursday (local time) by becoming the first Asian player to feature in five FIFA World Cups during Japan’s Group F match against Sweden in the 2026 edition at Dallas Stadium on June 25 (local time).

The 39-year-old has previously featured in the 2010 South Africa, 2014 Brazil, 2018 Russia, 2022 Qatar, and 2026 Canada-Mexico-United States tournaments, making him one of the most enduring figures in international football. With this appearance, Nagatomo also became only the 10th player in football history to feature in five or more World Cup editions.

The elite list includes Lionel Messi (6 editions), Cristiano Ronaldo (6 editions), Luka Modric, Luis Suarez, Manuel Neuer, Lothar Matthaus, Andres Guardado, Rafael Marquez, Antonio Carbajal, and now Yuto Nagatomo, who have played five editions, respectively.

Meanwhile, Brazil’s first-place finish in Group C extended their remarkable record of topping their World Cup group for a 12th consecutive tournament. The five-time champions have finished first in their group at every World Cup since 1982, maintaining an extraordinary 44-year streak of group-stage dominance. (ANI)

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