India announced their squad for the Champions Trophy 2025, which will be led by Rohit Sharma. KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant are the two wicketkeepers in the 15-man squad for the tournament. Sanju Samson, who didn’t play in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25, missed out on a spot in the team. Incidentally, it needs to be said that the cricketer Samson had not been thought for a berth in the VHT squad of the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) because the cricketer had not participated in the preparatory camp organized ahead of the tournament. Indian chief selector Ajit Agarkar too felt that exclusion from the Kerala squad had cost him the entry into the squad for the Champions Trophy team also. Also Read | Watch: Rinku Singh's Heartwarming Act Distributing Money to Helpers Goes Viral Now, the KCA President Jayesh George has spoken out on why they omitted the star cricketer from their squad ahead of the premier 50-over domestic tournament. George said that Samson just sent a simple message saying he will not be available for the preparatory camp and did not say anything about his unavailability. Here is what George was quoted as saying by Wisden “I am not sure if Samson missing the tournament was the reason he was excluded. The reason he was not added to the Vijay Hazare squad was because he sent a one-line text saying he would not be available for the 30-member preparatory camp. We were all of the impression that he would be leading the team since he is our white-ball captain and had led in the SMAT season as well. So, we went ahead and announced the squad, and later he sent a message stating he is available for selection," “Be it Sanju Samson or any other player, KCA has a policy in place that needs to be respected. We all know that Sanju does not need a camp to come into the squad, but is the Kerala team one that he can come and represent only when he feels like it? How did Samson reach the Indian team? It was only through the KCA. That doesn’t mean you turn up only when you feel like it for the Kerala team," he added. Samson, who captains Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL), will be back in action for India's T20I series against England, which starts on January 22 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, where the first match is scheduled to be played. He will be hoping to turn the tides in his favor with some stellar performances in the T20I series and mark a statement.