India has a proven and settled team. Although Ishan Kishan returned to the side after a 2-year absence, it felt like he was a regular member of the team. He fit into Suryakumar Yadav’s team, which has adopted an ultra-aggressive batting template, like a glove fits a hand.
Now remember, Kishan only came into the team because Tilak Varma was unavailable for selection. He’ll return to competitive cricket after nearly a month today for India ‘A’ match against the USA. Tilak will be fit for the T20 World Cup 2026 as well. That means someone will have to be dropped.
The Samson vs Kishan conundrum
Kishan was brought into the squad as the backup wicketkeeper. Jitesh Sharma was dropped since the management wanted a top-order keeper-batter. Sanju Samson, who was the primary gloveman, has had a crisis of sorts. He’s buckled under pressure, seems to have severe technical flaws, and, most importantly, can’t buy a run at the moment.
Suryakumar brushed off the selection question after India beat New Zealand 4-1. But right now, it’s Samson vs Kishan for the second opener spot. The scales are tipping in Kishan’s favour. Despite one fewer game, Kishan amassed nearly five times the runs that Samson did against the Kiwis, 215 to 46. Strike rate’s the most important stat for a batter in modern T20 cricket. Against New Zealand, Kishan struck at 231.18. It’s tough to imagine how India can look past the southpaw from Jharkhand.
Ishan Kishan & Sanju Samson against New Zealand
BatterInningsRunsHighestScoreAverageStrikeRate50s100sKishan421510353.75231.1811Samson546249.20135.2900But there can be two arguments against picking Kishan. First could be that he wasn’t comfortable behind the stumps against spinners. Second could be that Samson’s best level is higher than Kishan’s. The first issue can be tackled. One has to account for the fact that Kishan hasn’t kept to any of the Indian spinners in over 2 years, and with practice, he might feel comfortable. The answer to the second question could be that talent alone doesn’t make you successful. This has been true for Samson in his entire international career.
Not a memorable T20I series for Sanju Samson #INDvsNZ #SanjuSamson #T20I #TeamIndia #Cricket pic.twitter.com/l0xxaGZ42n
— InsideSport (@InsideSportIND) January 31, 2026Any chance for Kuldeep Yadav?
Since the 2024 T20 World Cup, Kuldeep Yadav has taken 25 wickets at 12.84. Among full member nation bowlers, only Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan has a better bowling average than him. Varun Chakaravarthy isn’t far behind him. Of course, he has a much larger sample size.
The issue is that India hasn’t been able to fit Kuldeep in. In general, spinners are having issues on modern flat surfaces in T20 cricket. Varun has somehow found a way to succeed. But with going for batting depth with all-rounders like Axar Patel, Shivam Dube, and Hardik Pandya, Kuldeep has found it tough to crack in.
India will go into the T20 World Cup with just three frontline bowlers: Arshdeep Singh, Varun, and Jasprit Bumrah. The only way Kuldeep can come in is if the conditions are spin-friendly. Arshdeep will go out of the side in that case.
Predicted India Playing XI for T20 World Cup 2026
Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Axar Patel (vc), Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit BumrahBench: Sanju Samson (wk), Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington SundarNote: Kuldeep Yadav might replace Arshdeep Singh in spin-friendly conditions
Predicted India Playing XI for T20 World Cup: Will Suryakumar Yadav drop Sanju Samson for Ishan Kishan? Inside Sport India.
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