Indian wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson’s father, Samson Viswanath, has lashed out at the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA), claiming that some officials in the state unit are hindering his son’s opportunities in the sport.

His reaction came in the wake of Sanju’s Champions Trophy 2025 snub. The Vijay Hazare Trophy no-show is believed to be the main reason behind his omission from India’s Champions Trophy squad despite scoring a century in his last ODI and T20I match.

Sanju Samson led Kerala in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy last year but was not picked for the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Later on, KCA secretary Vinod S Kumar said that Sanju was overlooked for skipping the team’s three-day preparatory camp in Wayanad.

However, Sanju’s father alleged that it was already known his son would not be selected for the List A tournament. He accused the KCA of holding a grudge against his son and added that the decision to exclude Sanju was made long before the tournament.

“There are people within KCA who have something against my child," Samson Viswanath was quoted as saying by Mathrubhumi.com.

“We’ve never spoken out against the association before, but this time, it’s become too much. Sanju isn’t the only one who didn’t attend the camp; yet other players in the same situation were allowed to play," he added.

“It’s not about Jayesh George (KCA president) or Vinod (KCA secretary); it’s some small people in between who turn everything into poison over trivial matters," he said.

Samson Viswanath recalled the past events and said KCA had earlier denied an opportunity to his son owing to injury. He highlighted an incident where he was disrespected by former KCA president, TC Mathew, for requesting a leave on behalf of his injured son.

“We are sportsmen, not interested in the business of sports. All I want is for my son to be given a fair chance to play. If there’s any mistake, we’re open to discussion and ready to fix it," he remarked.

As of today, Sanju Samson has represented India in 16 ODIs and 37 T20Is. While the wicketkeeper-batter is yet to get consistent opportunities in the 50-over format, the rest to Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill opened doors for him in the shortest format last year.

Samson made most of the opportunities at the top of the order and slammed three centuries across seven T20Is against Bangladesh and South Africa.

In ODIs, Samson has scored 510 runs at an average of 56.66 and a strike-rate of 99.60 with a hundred and three fifties to show for his efforts. His last ODI appearance for India was in December 2023 when he scored 108 against South Africa in Paarl.