# Ashwin says Samson must be facing mental battles over uncertain place 2026-09-15T13:02:04+00:00 | Sports | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets Ravichandran Ashwin has said Sanju Samson must be experiencing difficult mental battles due to repeated uncertainty over his place in the Indian team. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ashwin pointed out that Samson debuted in 2014 but has never become a permanent fixture across formats. Even after being named Player of the Tournament at the 2026 T20 World Cup, Samson was dropped after one failure in the England series, with 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi preferred. Times of India reports that Samson himself admitted on Tuesday that outside noise does affect cricketers in India. After scoring 57 off 22 balls against Afghanistan, Samson said: 'We are not robots. Definitely, it affects you.' He added that he does not view Sooryavanshi as a rival and that the team's goal is to win. Samson is part of the squad for the Afghanistan series and the Asian Games. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The coverage is uniform straight reporting: both outlets carry Ashwin's remarks verbatim and Samson's own admission without added slant. The only difference is that Times of India pairs Ashwin's comments with Samson's counterpoint, while Times Now leads with Ashwin's statement alone. The balanced reading is that the uncertainty is acknowledged by both a former player and the current player himself. The selector's next decision on the opening combination for the upcoming series will show whether the pattern changes. ## Coverage - timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report) Direct quotes from Samson's press conference, no framing beyond quotes - timesnownews.com (neutral report) Factual report of Ashwin's YouTube comments, no editorialising - timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report) Direct quotes from Samson's press conference, no framing beyond quotes Tags: Ravichandran Ashwin, Sanju Samson, T20 World Cup, Team India, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/ashwin-says-sanju-samson-facing-mental-battles-over-uncertain-india-place/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/ashwin-says-sanju-samson-facing-mental-battles-over-uncertain-india-place/#story-in-brief