Samson has been reinstated as India’s first-choice opener in T20Is after Gill's failure at the top of the order.
During the Asia Cup 2025 in UAE, Shubman Gill’s return to the T20I fold as vice-captain saw Sanju Samson losing his spot at the top of the order despite hitting three hundreds last year.
After receiving some chances in the middle-order, the wicketkeeper-batter was completely sidelined from the playing XI, with Jitesh Sharma being given the first preference because of his match finishing abilities.
However, after Gill failed to make a mark in 15 innings, Samson was reinstated as India’s first-choice opener during the fifth T20I against South Africa in Ahmedabad earlier this month.
Sanju Samson has also been picked in India’s 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup 2026, slated to be held in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8.
With 40 days remaining for the T20 World Cup, former cricketer Robin Uthappa has backed Samson to open the innings for India in global showpiece.
"Sanju Samson should be a starter in the T20 World Cup eleven, no matter what. And I will tell you why. So Sanju Samson is amongst the hundred makers post T20 World Cup 2024. In South Africa, he got back-to-back hundreds and then Bangladesh. (He) Motivated young stars who also put their hands up – if Sanju can score one hundred, I could score as well," Uthappa said in a video posted on his Instagram account.
He went to ask why the successful opening pair of Sanju Samson-Abhishek Sharma was dismantled without a convincing explanation from the team management.
"For me, secondly, what wrong did the opening partnership of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma do for them to get broken? It was a working partnership. Because of his versatile nature as a batsman, Sanju can bring stability to the playing combination along with his brilliance in leading a team, so he knows how to react under tough circumstances," Uthappa added.
Uthappa said Samson also offers balance to the side and highlighted his performances in pressure situations.
"The third reason that he brings a lot of balance into the side. We saw him absorb pressure in the Asia cup in the finals along with Tilak Verma and build that important partnership. But I still think if you're playing Sanju Samson, he has to bat either 1, 2 or 3, not below that,” he remarked.
India’s squad for T20 World Cup 2026: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (vc), Rinku Singh, Harshit Rana, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar, Ishan Kishan (wk)