After treading on a tight rope for a while, Sanju Samson finally asserted himself as India’s first-choice opening partner for Abhishek Sharma in T20Is with two consecutive fifties against Afghanistan.
Soon after India wrapped up the IND vs AFG T20I series by a 3-0 cleansweep, head coach Gautam Gambhir promptly revealed that Samson was always ahead of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the pecking order even though there had been a huge debate around the duo over the past couple of months, which also included Samson being replaced by Sooryavanshi in England.
The Player of the Tournament award winner at the T20 World Cup 2026, Samson was dropped in the middle of the UK tour following three low scores and replaced by Sooryavanshi, who had a blockbuster IPL.
Although Sooryavanshi, too, flopped in England, he made a compelling case by clinching the Man of the Series award in Zimbabwe.
Come the T20I series against Afghanistan in Delhi, pressure mounted on Samson when he fell for 10 in the 1st T20I. However, the Kerala superstar bounced back to form via a destructive 57 (22) in the 2nd T20I and then made 50 (35) in the 3rd T20I while playing a second fiddle role to the marauding centurion, Abhishek.
Leaving Sanju Samson out in England was probably the toughest decision in my coaching tenure: Gambhir
In the post-series press conference on Thursday, Gambhir announced that the Samson-Abhishek pair was his first-choice combination even though he had made the “toughest decision” of dropping Samson in England.
“Obviously, it was tough [dropping Samson]. Probably the toughest decision I’ve taken in my coaching tenure is obviously leaving him out in that England series. Because obviously, the way he’s performed before that. But again, sometimes you go with players’ form as well,” Gambhir said.
“We were always very clear. From my point of view, I was very clear that we want to go back to the combination that we had during the World Cup. Because those guys, after three or four failures, do not become bad players.”
Gautam Gambhir sets a 300-run target for India in T20Is
Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson blasted 142 runs for the opening stand in only 9.5 overs, which included finishing the powerplay at 100/0 on the back of the left-hander’s 16-ball fifty.
Gambhir revealed that he’s asked his batters to double down on their aggressive approach and next set the target of 300 for the team.
“For both Sanju and Abhishek, I think you can easily sit here and say one got a 50 and the other one got a 100. But for me, I think the biggest positive was when we got a 100 in the Powerplay. That we have never done in my coaching tenure.
“So I think that was a very clear message that if you’re going hard, just keep going hard. That is what the message and that is exactly the message going to be in the future as well – that we still haven’t reached 300 [in a T20I innings]. So that’s probably the next target because the kind of talent we have in the dressing room, we should be doing some incredible things,” the head coach asserted.
What next for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi?
Gambhir suggested the 15-year-old prodigy to wait for his opportunity and assured Vaibhav Sooryavanshi a long stint in the team whenever he gets the chance.
“From Vaibhav’s point of view, it was again a very clear conversation that he has to wait for his opportunity. We know the kind of talent he has. We know what he can do. But again, someone who’s done extremely well over a period of two years, obviously, will always be ahead of someone who’s just got into the team.
“So, whenever he gets that run, he will get a longer run as well. We want competition. We want that talent in the dressing room. Whether you’re a 15-year-old or a 30-year-old, when you have to wait for your opportunity, you have to wait for your opportunity,” the head coach concluded.
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