Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra made it clear in his YouTube video that Sanju Samson should be dropped from the starting XI. He strongly felt that the Indian team management showed enough support to Sanju Samson but he failed to prove it.

In Chopra’s latest video, he discusses India’s most likely starting XI for the 2026 T20 World Cup, which starts from February 7. Defending champion India will be favorites to win again. To protect their trophy, the Men in Blue must perform as expected.

Aakash Chopra ends Ishan Kishan vs Sanju Samson debate

The former cricketer said he had no hesitation in choosing Ishan Kishan over Sanju Samson for the opening slot. Ishan performed brilliantly against New Zealand in the recently concluded 5-match T20I series, while Sanju Samson failed to take off despite playing every match of the series.

Your daily dose of cricket!

Chopra prioritizes recent performance over sentiment to shape the best opening pairs. Abhishek Sharma has performed well; he will definitely open the innings, but with whom? That’s what he was asked.

“I think Ishan Kishan and Abhishek Sharma are together. The story is set in stone now. I don’t think there is any room for change there and it shouldn’t be there because Ishan Kishan has bowled so well. You will definitely feel sorry for Sanju but the truth is he squandered the opportunity,” the former opener said in a video shared on his YouTube channel ‘Aakash Chopra’.

Why should Ishan open with Abhishek Sharma?

Chopra did not raise any doubts about Samson’s credentials as an opener. He highlighted the fact that the experienced batsman was out of form. The former cricketer said the team is always ahead of any individual player. Hence, he had no hesitation in naming Ishan Kishan in the starting XI position in place of Sanju Samson for the upcoming T20 World Cup.

“Two things can happen. Either you wait for Sanju’s good days or you say play whoever’s days go well. I will choose to play whoever’s days go well because Sanju and Ishan are not important to me. India is important to me and it is important for India to have well-informed players playing. So Ishan Kishan and Abhishek Sharma play together,” he said in support of his choice.

Latest statistics for Ishan and Sanju

If we look at the data of Ishan and Sanju, it is easy to understand why Aakash Chopra prefers people born in Jharkhand. In 4 games against New Zealand, Kishan scored 215 runs at an average of 53.75 and a strike rate of 231.18. He also scored a match-winner against New Zealand.

In contrast, Samson played all 5 games of the bilateral match and scored only 46 points with an average of 9.20 and a shooting percentage of 135.29, which is unforgettable.

Read more: Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli! Ishan Kishan reveals who supported him during his darkest phase