New Delhi: Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson joined the squad on Monday following a successful finger surgery. He underwent the surgery in February after sustaining an injury on his right index finger during the fifth T20 International match against England on February 2 in Mumbai.
The Indian wicketkeeper-batter was hit by a nearly 150kmph delivery from England pacer Jofra Archer. This prompted to Samson getting benched in India’s fielding period in the second innings and he was replaced by teammate Dhruv Jurel to keep the wickets as the latter was on the list of substitutes.
According to a report by ESPNcricinfo, Samson will remain doubtful to don the gloves behind the wickets and Jurel might be a backup option for the Jaipur-based franchise as well. This was his first appearance in a training session for RR in Guwahati. The 30-year-old was under a rehabilitation process at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
Samson was the retained by the Rajasthan Royals for the third time ahead of a mega auction after 2014 and 2022. The player has been the mainstay in the batting unit of the inaugural IPL champions ever since his debut in IPL 2013. He only played a couple of seasons for Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) in 2016 and 2017 when Royals served a two-year suspension period in the light of the spot-fixing scandal.
Young all-rounder Riyan Parag has also recovered from a shoulder injury and is said to be fit for selection as the Royals face IPL 2024 runners-up Sunrisers Hyderabad in their first match of the season at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on March 23.
Royals qualified for the playoffs last season only to be eliminated by the Hyderabad outfit in the Qualifier 2 match. The team has been looking for a second title since lifting it in the tournament’s first season in 2008.
