"Sanju is my first choice, he's your full-time obsession" - R Ashwin hilariously trolls fan after NZ vs IND 2026 T20I series

Former India all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin hilariously trolled a fan after the T20I series against New Zealand. The five-match series ended with the hosts bagging a seven-wicket win in the final game. Overall, India won the series 3-2.

As Sanju Samson failed to score in the final T20I, a fan tagged Ashwin on X, stating the star batter flopped in the entire series. The context was the former India all-rounder backing Samson to play over Vaibhav Suryavanshi.

However, the legend came up with a funny reply, stating that the fan was obsessed with Samson all the time.

"Sanju is my first choice, he's your full-time obsession 😂," he replied to the comment on X.

While Ashwin trolled the fan, it is worth noting that Sanju Samson was indeed inconsistent throughout the series. In five matches, he managed to score just 107 runs at an average of 21.40 and a strike rate of 142.66, with just one half-century. In the final T20I, he scored just four runs off ten balls.

The only fifty came in the first T20I, where he made 67 runs off 33 balls with eight fours and four sixes at a strike rate of 203.03. He made 14 off 17 in the second game, 18 off 13 in the third, and four off two in the fourth.

R Ashwin on why Sanju Samson deserves more chances

In a recent video on 'Ash ki Baat', Ravichandran Ashwin explained why Sanju Samson deserved to get consistent chances at the moment. He highlighted how the batter made his international debut in 2015 but took so many years to establish his place in the side due to inconsistent chances and failures.

That said, Ashwin felt it was Samson's time now, and therefore, Vaibhav Suryavanshi would have to wait due to competition, with the likes of Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan also doing well.

"There are many fans of Vaibhav. Even my mom does not watch if he is not playing. I am also a big fan of his. But you also have to look at Samson's story. He worked hard in the last 10-15 years. Many times, he got close but did not get chances and even failed. He came back, and now he has cemented his spot. It is his time now. He is there. He has performed. There is no question about Abhishek's spot either. Ishan, the way he has performed in the last 18 months everywhere, his place is also fixed. Vaibhav deserves. But unfortunately, he is in India. There is so much competition," he said.

He also argued that Samson plays only one format for India at the moment and therefore deserved to be preferred over Suryavanshi.

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