After a long break of three years, the outstanding batter Sanju Samson will make a comeback in the next Ranji Trophy. In the first two matches of the competition, the Kerala team will be led by the right-handed batter. Samson will try to put up some strong performances in the home competition in the hopes of rejoining the Indian team.
Samson will serve as Kerala’s captain for their debut Ranji Trophy match against Jharkhand. The game is scheduled to begin on December 13th (Tuesday). The Kerala board has also revealed their starting lineup for the opening two games. The board also named Sijomon Joseph as a new vice-captain in addition to selecting Samson as captain.
Along with Jharkhand, Goa, Rajasthan, Puducherry, Chhattisgarh, Services, and Karnataka, Gujarat was assigned to Elite Group C. They went undefeated in 2021 (two victories and a tie), but due to the new format, they were unable to advance to the knockout round.
Ranji Trophy 2022: Kerala squad for first two matches
Sanju Samson (c), Sijomon J (vc), Rohan Kunnummal, Krishna Prasad, Vathsal Govind, Rohan Prem, Sachin Baby, Shoun Roger, Akshay Chandran, Jalaj Saxena, Basil Thampi, Nidheesh M D, Fanoos F, Basil N P, Vaisakh Chandran, Sachin S, Rahul P
Samson needs to do well in Ranji
Samson will have to wait till the next year because the Bangladesh tour will be the final series of the 2022 campaign. In the months of January and February, The Men in Blue are scheduled to perform in Sri Lanka, Australia, and New Zealand. Sri Lanka is the first opponent in the home series. Three ODI and T20I matches will make up India vs Sri Lanka series.
Australia and New Zealand will be the next opponents for the home team after the Sri Lanka series. A white ball series between Team India and the Blackcaps will be played. Four Test matches and three One-Day Internationals will make up the seven-match series versus Australia. Samson, will captain Kerala in the domestic tournament. He has to perform well in the Ranji Trophy to qualify for the national team once again.
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