Sanju Samson, who had done well for the Indian team in T20Is as an opener, has begun his efforts to adjust to a new role ahead of the upcoming Asia Cup 2025 tournament.

He was named in the Indian squad for the Asia Cup 2025 on August 19, and with Shubman Gill being named the vice-captain, it is assumed that Gill will open the innings for India, along with Abhishek Sharma. This means one of Sanju Samson and Jitesh Sharma will be keeping wickets and batting in the middle order.

While Jitesh Sharma has batted in the middle order all his career and also did well as a finisher for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in their IPL 2025 winning run, Sanju Samson has batted at the top for both the Indian team and for his IPL franchise, Rajasthan Royals, as well.

In a bid to salvage his spot in the Men in Blue side, Sanju Samson has decided to bat in the middle order in the ongoing Kerala Cricket League T20 tournament. He is playing for Kochi Blue Tigers, and till now, his performance has been below par.

During a recent match between his team and Alleppey Ripples, Samson batted at no. 6. However, he only managed 13 runs off 22 balls. This is only the start of the tournament, and Samson still has six games to demonstrate his versatility and middle-order ability.

Samson has amassed 861 runs in 38 innings at an average of 25.38 over his 42 T20I match career for India, with three hundreds and two fifties. He has found new life as an opener since last year, amassing three hundreds in five innings during matches against South Africa and Bangladesh.

The Asia Cup 2025 begins on September 9. India's campaign will begin on September 10 against the UAE, followed by a high-voltage game against Pakistan on September 14, both of which will take place in Dubai. India's final group stage match against Oman is scheduled for September 19 in Abu Dhabi.