India wicketkeeper Sanju Samson has endured a nightmare series in the five-match series against New Zealand at home. Although the Men in Blue won 4-1, the 31-year-old only scored 46 points, with an average of 9.20 and a high of 24 points.

The final nail in the coffin came when Sanju Samson was killed for six runs in the final T20I of the series at home in Thiruvananthapuram. The right-handed batsman looked uneasy early on on a batting-friendly wicket and eventually lost his wicket to Rocky Ferguson in the power play.

His rival, fellow wicket-keeper Ishan Kishan, scored a stunning maiden T20I ton after Samson was dismissed to bat. After India’s 46-run victory, fans and pundits were almost unanimous in declaring that the end was coming for the Kerala Gloves.

On that note, let’s take a look at the top five experts Sanzhou Samson after another failure IND vs NZ 2026 5th T20I match.

#1 Irfan Pathan

The former all-rounder highlighted the wicket-keeper batsman’s point of view, claiming that the selectors were to blame for the recent misfortune. However, he also said that at the end of the day, the run didn’t come from Samson because of a shaky mentality and technical errors.

“As for Sanju Samson, he didn’t score. There are two reasons for the batsman’s struggles. Firstly, the batsman’s mentality is not in the right place and secondly due to technical glitches. A batsman’s performance is inconsistent but when he does, he smashes three centuries at the top and is asked to bat lower in the order due to other players,” the former all-rounder said during his match. Youtube channel.

“Samson looks mentally disturbed and technically deficient. No team would want their starting XI to struggle with runs and he is struggling with two things. The onus lies with the selectors,” he added.

#2 K Srikanth

former India Opener and selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth says there is no turning back for Sanju Samson after a string of recent defeats and Ishan Kishan’s A belated rise. Although he admitted that Samson was Shubman Gill Returning won’t help his case, but at the same time he feels like he’s been given enough opportunities.

“Of course, everything is set. It started last year when Archer kept throwing him out. No one will get so many opportunities like this. They gave him a long rope. Yes, they played with his position a little bit during the Asia Cup,” K Srikkanth said on his website. Youtube channel.

“You are not scoring runs at all and failing in the 10th over, opening up the batting and on the other hand, Ishan Kishan is playing game-winning knocks and he is putting the team in a different zone entirely. There is no comparison between the two now,” he added.

#3 Akash Chopra

The former India opener also believes Samson has run out of chances and doesn’t think he will start in place of the in-form Ishan Kishan in the upcoming 2026 T20 World Cup. He further said that Samson looked shaky during his brief stay at the crease in the fifth T20I, which looked far from reassuring.

“Unfortunately, Sanju Samson’s story is over for now. He also played in the last World Cup but did not play. He will not start in the starting XI for this World Cup as well. This has been confirmed,” Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

“Yes (Samson was out of the World Cup XI). Of course, he didn’t score runs and more importantly, he didn’t look good in the middle. You could almost feel and sense that there was a pattern where he was getting deep inside the crease against faster bowlers. Both outside and inside edges got him a few runs but he doesn’t look comfortable at all right now,” Aakash Chopra said ESPN CricInfo.

#4 R Ashwin

The legendary former India spinner felt Samson looked completely lost at this juncture while saying he failed to cope with the pressure put on him with every defeat in the series.

“Sangju looks like a guy who really lacks confidence at this point. In international cricket, you have to find answers to questions. It’s also about how you handle pressure. For both things, Sanju has to give answers. It looks worrying,” Ashwin said on his website. Youtube channel.

#5 Shrivac Goswami

The former U-19 World Cup winner said Samson did not take his chances and hence Kishan will get his place as he deserves.

“Sanju Samson was a very good player but unfortunately he ruined his chances. Ishan Kishan well, truly and deservedly cemented his place,” he wrote in the post X.