Dubai [UAE], September 27 (ANI): Sanju Samson could outdo star keeper-batters MS Dhoni and Rishabh Pant to deliver the best T20I multi-nation tournament by an Indian wicketkeeper-batter if he plays a big knock during the final of the ongoing Asia Cup against Pakistan.

During the ongoing tournament, Samson has scored 108 runs in three innings, averaging 36.00 and striking at 127.05, with a half-century and a best score of 56 against Oman. He has batted at fifth spot two times, scoring 13 and 39. His half-century came at the number three spot. During this tournament, he has not played at the opening spot, which gave his career a new lease of life last year, as vice-captain Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma are at the top, and the rest of the batting order has been flexible.

With 64 more runs, he could outdo Pant to have the best-ever T20I multi-nation tournament by an Indian wicketkeeper-batter ever. During the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, Pant was one of India's prominent performers, with 171 runs in eight innings at an average of 24.42 and a strike rate of 127.61, with a best score of 42.

At the second spot is Dhoni, who delivered a solid title-winning ICC T20 World Cup 2007 campaign with the bat, scoring 154 runs in six innings at an average of 30.80 and a strike rate of 128.33, with a best score of 45, which included a vital 36 against Australia in the semifinals.

Samson is just 31 runs away from reaching the milestone of 1,000 T20I runs, having made 969 runs in 48 matches and 41 innings at an average of 26.18, with a strike rate of over 149, including three centuries and three fifties, with a best score of 111.

Squads:

India Squad: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Sanju Samson(w), Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Jitesh Sharma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube

Pakistan Squad: Sahibzada Farhan, Fakhar Zaman, Saim Ayub, Salman Agha(c), Hussain Talat, Mohammad Haris(w), Mohammad Nawaz, Faheem Ashraf, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed, Hasan Ali, Khushdil Shah, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Salman Mirza, Hasan Nawaz, Sufiyan Muqeem. (ANI)