So, Team India have once again made a headline-making change up top. While Abhishek Sharma remains the constant, the switch between Sanju Samson and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi continues. The Gautam Gambhir-coached side, which arrived at Southampton late, has given Samson another chance in the last match of the series. After consistent failures, India ran out of patience with Samson, giving a monumental debut to 15-year-old Sooryavanshi. However, that hasn’t worked out as well. Now, Samson is back in the mix.
Apart from this, India also benched Washington Sundar for Suryansh Shedge. Sundar’s role in the T20I side has been non-existent, with him not bowling more than one over while also batting at number eight.
India’s Playing XI vs ENG – 5th T20I
Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan (w), Shreyas Iyer (c), Shivam Dube, Tilak Varma, Suryansh Shedge, Axar Patel, Prince Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna
On bench: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Ravi Bishnoi, Washington Sundar
The move perhaps tells us that the management still isn’t completely sold on either option. Samson’s case is fascinating because few Indian cricketers have experienced such extreme highs and lows in such a short span. Just a few months ago, he was India’s T20 World Cup hero, smashing 97*, 89 and 89 in the knockout stages and walking away with the Player of the Tournament award. Then came scores of 0 and 5 against Ireland, followed by a first-ball duck against England. Eventually, the same player found himself out of the XI.
India’s decision to hand Sooryavanshi an opportunity wasn’t surprising. The teenager arrived with a reputation that few 15-year-olds have ever carried. His IPL 2026 campaign was extraordinary, and there is a growing belief within Indian cricket that he is a generational T20 talent. Yet international cricket has a way of humbling everyone. Across three opportunities, Sooryavanshi hasn’t quite managed to grab the spot with both hands, leaving the door open again. He was owned by his Rajasthan Royals teammate Jofra Archer.
Most runs for India in Ireland and England T20Is
| Player | Inns | Runs | HS | Ave | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shreyas Iyer | 6 | 203 | 80* | 40.60 | 149.26 |
| Abhishek Sharma | 6 | 177 | 59 | 29.50 | 196.66 |
| Tilak Varma | 6 | 125 | 55 | 25.00 | 113.63 |
| Shivam Dube | 6 | 116 | 42* | 23.20 | 136.47 |
| Ishan Kishan | 6 | 79 | 49 | 13.16 | 108.21 |
| Axar Patel | 6 | 45 | 15 | 7.50 | 95.74 |
| Harshit Rana | 5 | 44 | 21 | 8.80 | 118.91 |
| Vaibhav Sooryavanshi | 3 | 42 | 15 | 14.00 | 168.00 |
| Washington Sundar | 2 | 14 | 9 | 7.00 | 70.00 |
| Arshdeep Singh | 3 | 10 | 4* | 5.00 | 76.92 |
| Prince Yadav | 2 | 8 | 6* | – | 266.66 |
| Sanju Samson | 3 | 6 | 5 | 2.00 | 50.00 |
Samson has failed horribly in those chances. Now, it’s another audition for Samson, who knows better than anyone that opportunities don’t come endlessly in Indian cricket. With Prabhsimran Singh waiting in the wings for the Zimbabwe series, if Samson goes big, he will certainly make things awkward for selectors.
