‘We’re not doing well with Sanju Samson’: Former Indian cricketer’s harsh verdict

Sanju Samson of India (PTI Photo) Former India batsman Aakash Chopra believes Rajat Patidar’s return to the Indian T20I team will have to wait, arguing that the current batting line-up leaves little room for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru skipper despite his impressive performances.Patidar was not included in India’s 16-man squad for the ongoing five-match T20I series against England. His absence has sparked debate, especially with India having a predominantly left-handed bat in the top order.During a video on his YouTube channel ‘Aakash Chopra’, the former opener was asked if Patidar deserves a place in India’s T20I squad. Chopra responded by saying that the bigger question was determining which batter should back off.“It’s a very good question, but to answer that question we’ll have to dig a little deeper and see who can go out. You’ve kept left-handers in the top three at the moment. You won’t see Rajat Patidar in any of those places because you’ve got Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan,” Chopra replied.“There is no room to change any of these three. Ishan Kishan is at No. 3. If you have the power to remove Ishan Kishan, remove him. He has become the No. 1 T20I batsman right now. Looks like we are not doing well with Sanju,” he added.Chopra’s remarks come after Sanju Samson, who was part of India’s victorious T20 World Cup 2026 campaign and finished as the player of the tournament, was left out of the playing eleven for the second T20I against England. Samson featured in the opening match but after a run of low scores, he made way for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi at the top of the order.The former Indian cricketer then reviewed the middle order and pointed out that Shreyas Iyer and vice-captain Tilak Varma are unlikely to lose their places. This, he suggested, leaves only Shivam Dube’s position as a possible opening for Patidar.“Shreyas Iyer comes in at No. 4 and your vice-captain Tilak Varma at No. 5. Shivam Dube comes in at No. 6. If you don’t want to move the captain and vice-captain, which you shouldn’t, would you like to play Rajat Patidar instead of Shivam Dube?” he said in the same video.Although Chopra admitted that Patidar deserves another opportunity at the international level, he feels the timing is not right as the current combination is difficult to break.“I think his time will come. Rajat Patidar will definitely play for India again. He has played Test cricket before. It is only a matter of time, but has that time come? It will only come when you have to drop somebody. Who do you drop? That question will have to be answered first. I don’t think there is scope for his name to come up immediately,” Chopra.Patidar has so far represented India in three Test matches and one ODI. He built an impressive record in domestic and franchise T20 cricket, scoring 3,389 runs in 106 innings at a strike rate of 160.08, boosting his chances of another opportunity in India’s shortest format setup.