'Obviously Our Job...': India Batting Coach Backs Sanju Samson Amidst Poor Form In Ongoing T20I Series Against New Zealand

India is hosting New Zealand for a five-match T20I series ahead of the upcoming World Cup. While the hosts are currently leading 3-1 in the series, star batter Sanju Samson has failed to make an impact in the series due to poor form.

Sanju Samson has endured a hard run since returning to the top order, managing just 40 runs across four matches against New Zealand at an average of 10 and a strike rate of 142.86. Following his performance in the series, many have claimed that Samson should be replaced with Ishan Kishan, who has become a breakout player since his return in the format, in the top order.

India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak has, however, disagreed with these claims and backed Sanju Samson amid his struggles with getting runs.

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India Team Batting Coach Sitanshu Kotak On Sanju Samson

Sitanshu Kotak acknowledged that Sanju Samson has not scored many runs in the ongoing series against New Zealand, as he should have ahead of the World Cup. However, Kotak shared that there is very little cause for concern regarding Samson and that the team and the management know what he is capable of and have full faith in his ability.

In the pre-match press conference, Sitanshu Kotak shared, "Sanju is Sanju. Okay, probably he has not scored as many runs as everybody would have liked, but that’s part of the game. Sometimes you have five innings in a row when you score heavily, and sometimes you don’t. So it’s all down to the individual and how he keeps his mind strong, and obviously our job is to keep him in a good frame of mind and make sure he practises and works hard."

He further added, "We all know what Sanju is capable of, so I don’t think there’s anything more to say about Sanju, because he’s been really good."

Sanju Samson will face a final test ahead of the T20 World Cup at his home ground in Trivandrum in the fifth T20I match against New Zealand on January 31, 2026.

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Skipper Suryakumar Yadav Rediscovered His Old Form

Much like Sanju Samson, captain Suryakumar Yadav was also struggling with scoring runs. However, the batter found his form back in the T20I series and registered consecutive fifties in the second and third T20I fixtures, ending his 23-innings drought without a half-century.