Former Indian all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin has put his weight behind Sanju Samson amid the ongoing T20I series against New Zealand. Samson has returned with scores of 10, 6, and 0 in the first three T20Is against the Kiwis after getting back his opening slot.

Ashwin reckons the team management would be making a mistake if they open the innings with Ishan Kishan, who scored 76 runs off 32 balls in the second T20I, instead of Sanju Samson.

Samson was earlier dropped to the middle order after Shubman Gill was appointed as the team’s vice-captain.

Ravichandran Ashwin said on his YouTube Channel, “It’s way too early to think of dropping him. If India keeps doing such circus acts by playing Sanju when he did well before, and now Kishan because he’s playing well now, I don’t have to tell how it’ll end for India. It’s not ideal inside the dressing room. There is a lot of competition for places, but it’s too early for this change.”

Ashwin said it would be unfair if Samson is not given his share of chances at the top of the order.

“It’ll be very unfair. This opening combination has been reverted only for the last two games. A player has got out playing an attacking shot. If you penalize him for that and bench him, how will you witness the best of that player? It wasn’t that there was a rush of blood or that he wasn’t calm. He just saw the ball and went for it ( 2nd T20I dismissal). That’s how you should instinctively bat, but it just didn’t go his way,” said Ashwin (via the aforementioned source).

Samson has scored 1048 runs in 54 T20Is at an average of 24.95.