India’s World Cup hero Sanju Samson may face tough competition from newcomers for a T20I spot as youngsters continue to dominate IPL 2026.
Sanju Samson’s move to CSK has not been of much benefit as he has failed to deliver consistent efforts with the bat. Samson scored a big century and scored 48 runs in two wins for CSK, but his form is not promising to win matches regularly.
With the emergence of several new cricketers as dynamic shotmakers who can utilize the powerplay even better, Samson’s importance in the Indian team may diminish. This time, he will not be able to get a place in the middle order either, as players like Rajat Patidar and Shreyas Iyer are performing brilliantly.
Five opening batsmen who can threaten Sanju Samson’s position in the Indian T20 team
5. Priyansh Arya
PBKS scouts did a wonderful job by picking up a talent like Priyansh Arya from the first season of Delhi Premier League. He got recognition for hitting 6 sixes in a single over in DPL.
Playing for Punjab Kings, Priyansh scored 450+ runs in 2025 with his first IPL century. He has continued his form this season too with a brilliant innings against Lucknow Super Giants.
Arya has scored 211 runs this season and has a strike rate of 248, while the average is 42. His inning of 93 runs in just 37 balls against LSG was a masterclass in this season of IPL.
4. Yashasvi Jaiswal
Yashasvi Jaiswal might seem like the ideal choice to replace Sanju Samson, not because he plays as an opening batsman, but because Jaiswal is the right mix of aggressive play and game-awareness. Jaiswal is never naive in playing inappropriate shots and has a good understanding of how to maintain the pace of his innings as per the batsman’s requirements.
Having been consistently talented for India in T20 cricket before being dropped from the team, he has scored many runs for Rajasthan Royals even in the toughest of seasons. At the same time, this season also he has scored 223 runs in 6 matches and is scoring runs at a strike rate of 152.73.
3. Prabhsimran Singh
The Punjab Kings opening batsman, who has been playing in the IPL for the last few years, has always made useful contributions for his team. His breakout season was in 2023 when he debuted as a full-time opening batsman for the Kings.
After scoring 700 runs in the 2023 and 2024 seasons, Prabhasimran was one of three players retained by PBKS ahead of the mega-auction for the 2025 season. He repaid the faith by scoring 549 runs in the season with a strike rate of over 160.
This season too, Prabhsimran has been in very good form along with his opening partner Cooper Connolly and captain Shreyas Iyer. With 211 runs, he has played two match-winning innings against Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad.
2. Vaibhav Suryavanshi
This 15 year old girl has been the topic of discussion on every tongue for the last one year. He has scored runs, but what makes him an exception and a huge asset to the T20 team is his tremendous strike rate and ability to strike the ball fearlessly.
Having scored 246 runs this season, Suryavanshi, now 15, is available for selection in the senior men’s team. He has been in the headlines since his first century in IPL in 2025. Paired with Abhishek Sharma, they can form one of the most destructive opening pairs the world has ever seen.
1.Shubman Gill
The former India vice-captain is the last name on our list and is also the most likely player to return for the T20 opening spot. If Gill continues to dominate this season of IPL, he will make a comeback in the Indian team.
Last time the message was very clear that Gill’s form made him unfit for the combination and as a result, he was left out of the World Cup squad. But with Sanju Samson out of the team, Gill can easily slot in at the top, as Ishan Kishan has been widely used at No. 3.
Currently, he is ranked second in the Orange Cap leaderboard and has scored 265 runs after 5 matches.
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