Sanju Samson opened the innings for India in the first T20I against Afghanistan at Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi, on September 13, 2026. The match also marked Shreyas Iyer’s debut as captain in the shortest format at home. Samson had been vying with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for the opening slot alongside Abhishek Sharma. His recall followed a drop for the Zimbabwe T20I series, where he managed 27, 1, 0, and 5 in his previous four T20Is.
Aakash Chopra endorsed the selection of Samson at the top. The former India opener cited the perceived injustice of Samson’s earlier exclusion, noting that he had been named Player of the Tournament at the T20 World Cup 2026 before being dropped after two poor matches. In the Afghanistan game, Samson scored 10 off 8 balls before being dismissed by Azmatullah Omarzai.
“I was focusing on only one guy, and that was Sanju Samson, because we have been saying a slight injustice has been done to him. You win the World Cup and then get left out after two bad matches. However, he got out again—he was batting decently but was caught in the deep,” Chopra said.
“So one innings has gone bad, and the innings are getting counted. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi is sitting outside. There is already a question now because you made Vaibhav sit out after doing well in Zimbabwe. I was in favor of playing Sanju, but the pressure will keep mounting because the pressure will be there until Vaibhav keeps sitting out,” he added.
Sooryavanshi had impressed during the Zimbabwe series and remained in the squad for the Afghanistan assignment. His T20I strike rate of 189.22, backed by consistent performances in Zimbabwe, made a strong case for his inclusion. Nevertheless, the decision to overlook him in favor of Samson ensured that the pressure on the veteran batter would continue to grow.
