Despite showcasing his abilities as a reliable opener, wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson has been shuffled around the batting order during the ongoing Asia Cup 2025. Though primarily slotted at number five, Samson was promoted to number three against Oman, while in the Super Four clash against Bangladesh, he didn’t get a chance to bat at all despite India losing five wickets. This inconsistency in his batting position appears to have affected his rhythm, resulting in underwhelming performances as far as the strike rate is concerned.
Nevertheless, Samson has managed to make an impact with the bat. He scored a composed half-century against Oman and followed it up with a crucial 39-run knock against Sri Lanka. So far, he has accumulated 108 runs across three matches at a strike rate of 127.05.
Currently, the Kerala-born is just 64 runs away from surpassing Rishabh Pant to become the highest run-scorer by an Indian keeper-batter in a T20I multi-nation tournament. Pant holds the record with 171 runs, achieved during the T20 World Cup 2024. MS Dhoni sits second with 154 runs from the T20 World Cup 2007.
Samson needs 31 runs to complete 1000 T20I runs
Samson made his T20I debut against Zimbabwe in 2015. However, it was only in 2025 when the cricketer managed to cement his spot in the Indian team. So far, the 30-year-old has played 48 matches, scoring 969 runs at a strike rate of 149.07. He currently needs 31 runs to complete 1000 runs and become the 12th Indian cricketer to achieve the feat.
Samson can achieve the feat in the Asia Cup final clash against Pakistan on September 28 in Dubai. However, it needs to be seen if the cricketer manages to bat in the middle, given how dominant India’s top order has been in the tournament.