Predicted India Playing XI vs Namibia: Sanju Samson to make T20 World Cup debut; Bumrah replaces Siraj?

Suryakumar Yadav’s India are ready to take another step in their march towards defending the T20 World Cup crown as they head to the capital city, New Delhi. After dodging a scare against the USA, it is time for Namibia to challenge India in their second game of the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.

India almost had a full-strength team in the tournament opener against the USA. The batting completely failed, but Suryakumar Yadav stood up with his best T20 innings. However, India only had 13 players to choose from as Washington Sundar wasn’t there, while Harshit Rana was ruled out on the eve of the tournament. Against the USA, Bumrah didn’t play. It was confirmed before the match that Bumrah was caught up with viral fever.

Now the action moves to Delhi, we take a look at India’s possible playing XI for the T20 World Cup game against Namibia.

Sanju Samson to replace Abhishek Sharma? But Why?

Sanju Samson may be in for a lucky break. He started this tournament behind the pecking order as Ishan Kishan pipped him as India’s first-choice keeper-opener. Kishan opened with Abhishek Sharma, but the latter seemed to an upset stomach! Mohammed Siraj, after taking a three-fer against the USA, shared that Abhishek wasn’t feeling well. The southpaw had a worst possible game, geting out for a golden duck. However, it is now known that he was having an upset stomach.

This is the reason why Samson can be a straightaway replacement in the starting XI. The Kerala superstar is the only specialist batter on the bench currently. Abhishek didn’t train with the team on Tuesday. This is a clear sign that he hasn’t recovered well despite traveling to Delhi. So, if he fails to turn up against Namibia, Samson may have a golden chance to redeem himself after a horrible series against New Zealand.

Despite playing five matches, Samson accumulated just 46 runs in total, averaging 9.20. He was struggling both mentally and technically with the Kiwi pacers finding it easy to dismiss him early on. He was going too back on the crease, landing in awkward positions. It must be noted that Samson is yet to play a T20 World Cup game despite winning the title in 2024. He was part of the squad as a backup keeper but India persisted with Rishabh Pant throughout.

Hardluck for Siraj as Bumrah is back

While Samson might be in store for a lucky chance, things may be disappointing for Mohammed Siraj. A couple of days ago, Siraj took three wickets against the USA and was influential to the bowling group. A day prior, he didn’t know that he will be part of the World Cup. Siraj had made plans to travel to Madrid to watch his favourite club in action before a call from Suryakumar turned his February for good.

However, he may find a place on the bench as Jasprit Bumrah is ready to go. The only reason why Siraj played in Mumbai was due to the fact that Bumrah wasn’t well. But now, Bumrah is back on the field and even bowled after a 10-day break. India would want Bumrah to find rhythm before the all-important IND vs PAK clash on February 15. So, they would need for the star pacer to have four overs under his belt.

For those unaware, Washington Sundar has joined the team as well and bowled in the training session on Thursday too. However, he is unlikely to find a place in the XI.

Predicted India XI vs Namibia

Ishan Kishan (WK)
Sanju Samson/Abhishek Sharma
Tilak Varma
Suryakumar Yadav (C)
Hardik Pandya
Shivam Dube
Rinku Singh
Axar Patel
Varun Chakaravarthy
Arshdeep Singh
Jasprit Bumrah
On Bench: Kuldeep Yadav, Sanju Samson/Abhishek Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar