Fans are rooting for the return of Sanju Samson to the team, but is he in form to handle the World Cup pressure?

There is no doubt that India’s star opener Abhishek Sharma has been in wretched form, racking up duck after duck that has put the Men in Blue in a dangerous situation. His regular failures have once again made the fans cheer for the return of Sanju Samson as the team’s opener. However, is Samson in form to deal with the World Cup pressure?

This is not the first time fans have asked for Samson to get a chance in the team, but Samson has got multiple chances, but he has failed to live up to many occasions. In fact, many may not be aware, but the T20I games leading up to the World Cup were not fruitful for Samson.

Samson’s form

When Abhishek Sharma was struggling with a stomach issue and missed the Namibia game, Samson made an appearance, scoring 22 runs in merely eight balls at a strike rate of 275. Yes, the strike rate makes it look superb on paper, but a player of Samson’s calibre should’ve stayed longer on the crease, especially against a minnow opponent like Namibia.

🚨 ISHAN KISHAN DESTROYED CAREER OF SANJU SAMSON 🚨

- Since the New Zealand series, Ishan Kishan has been in the form of his life 💥

- Today, Sanju Samson was benched and Ishan Kishan, replacing him at the top, scored a 20 ball 53 vs South Africa 👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/1eq9KnRuZu

— Richard Kettleborough (@RichKettle07) February 4, 2026

It is impossible to determine how Samson’s batting would have panned out in the rest of the games against PAK, the USA, the Netherlands, and South Africa, but as is the case with Sharma, the situation would’ve been 50-50 with Samson.

Games lining up to the WC

Sanju Samson was India's first-choice keeper-batter in T20Is before the series against New Zealand, but a series of failures - and Ishan Kishan's success - might have pegged him back.

▶️https://t.co/BYX6eFMbC6 #INDvNZ pic.twitter.com/3pzY3YdyU0

— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) January 29, 2026

Even before the World Cup, the T20I games played by Samson did not fetch performances worth highlighting. Against New Zealand in Thiruvananthapuram, Samson scored only six runs, whereas in Vishakhapatnam, he made 24 runs. In matches played at Guwahati, Raipur and Nagpur, Samson’s scores were 0, 6, and 10 runs, respectively, so the question is, on what basis are fans and pundits rooting to accommodate Samson in place of Sharma?

Replace Varma

🚨 SANJU SAMSON & TILAK VARMA – LAST 15 T20I INNINGS 🚨
Sanju Samson –
22(8), 6(6), 24(15), 0(1), 6(5), 10(7), 37(22), 2(4), 24(21), 39(23), 13(17), 56(45), 16(7), 1(3), 3(6)

Tilak Varma –
1(2), 37(27), 25(24), 25(21), 22(16), 73(42), 25*(34), 62(34), 26(32), 5(6), 29(26), 0(2),… pic.twitter.com/pG9KYL59yX

— All about Cricket (@CricHitmanThala) February 24, 2026

Even replacing Tilak Varma is another question that is beyond our comprehension. Yes, Varma has not been able to play match-winning runs or high-impact scores, but he has been consistently scoring 25–30 runs in all the games while coming down the order. So once again, the question stands: is Samson in form to deal with the World Cup pressure, replacing players who have been more consistent than him?

Samson in

🚨 INDIA NEW OPENING PAIR ALERT?🚨

Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan practice session together. 👀pic.twitter.com/84tGuNtu7u

— ​AJAY (@Supremacyx9) February 24, 2026

With Rinku Singh out of the team to take care of his hospitalised father, Sanju Samson is expected to make the team with a rejig in the top order. However, in our book of thoughts, if Samson gets a chance, it should be at the cost of removing Sharma while accommodating Axar Patel in the lower order. Such a move will give India an extra reliable lower-end batter plus another bowling option.

Should both Sharma and Samson fail to make an impact, India's World Cup journey could end, so slotting in Axar Patel by choosing either Sharma or Samson is a fail-safe option for the Men in Blue.