AB de Villiers Suggests Sanju Samson Nearly Secured India ODI Spot Ahead of England Tour

Former South Africa captain AB de Villiers noted that Sanju Samson was in contention for a place in India’s ODI squad for the England tour. The 15‑member squad, unveiled on June 21, selected KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan as the wicket‑keeping choices, omitting both Samson and Rishabh Pant.

Samson rode the momentum from his Player‑of‑the‑Tournament performance in India’s T20 World Cup 2026 victory into a solid IPL 2026 season with Chennai Super Kings. Although he earned a call‑up to India’s T20I squad for the Ireland and England fixtures, the selectors left him out of the ODI lineup, and Rishabh Pant was excluded from both white‑ball squads. De Villiers added his perspective on the wicketkeeper discussion.

“Ishan Kishan and KL Rahul are the two top wicket-keepers. The big thing is there is no Pant, no Samson. Samson must have been close, closer than Pant, as he had a really good IPL and also, prior to that, showed signs of form. Not a lot of surprises there, but just for Samson, I feel he was close,” De Villiers said on his YouTube channel.

Was Jaiswal also unlucky to miss out?

De Villiers also addressed the case of Yashasvi Jaiswal, who scored 110 not out against Afghanistan in the third ODI in Chennai but was not retained once Virat Kohli was cleared fit for the England series.

“It was a little bit of a tough one on Jaiswal, who was back in Virat’s place, scoring the hundred, and now he’s got to make way. No complaints there, but it is just a little bit harsh on players sometimes. When your king comes back, when the main players come back, there is a process they are looking at,” De Villiers concluded.

The three-match ODI series between India and England begins on Tuesday, July 14 at Edgbaston in Birmingham, with games also scheduled in Cardiff on July 16, and at Lord’s on July 19.

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