Why Shubman Gill over Sanju Samson? Suryakumar Yadav drops truth bomb on India’s opening debate

Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav has made it clear that Shubman Gill will walk straight back into his old opening role, pushing Sanju Samson out of the top spot once again, in the upcoming five-match T20I series against South Africa, starting on December 9 in Vishakhapatnam.

This decision comes as a major setback for Samson, who built strong momentum as an opener in T20Is. After returning to India’s T20I line-up in 2024, the Kerala wicketkeeper-batter was given a steady run at the top following Rohit Sharma's retirement from the format.

Has Sanju Samson permanently lost his opening position?

He took this opportunity with both hands, smashing three centuries in five innings and building a strong partnership with Abhishek Sharma. This made many believe that Samson would stay at the top for a longer time, but the entire equation shifted when Gill was named India’s vice-captain ahead of the 2025 Asia Cup.

SHORTS

View More

Your daily dose of cricket!

Loading...

Read Also: Not Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma as India Batsman Becomes Pakistan's Most-Searched Athlete Of 2025

Gill had been a key part of India’s T20I plans until July 2024, as he was more focused on ODIs and Tests. However, once Gill returned, the Indian cricket team management felt he deserved to take back the opening slot he had held earlier.

Samson was moved to the middle order, but the adjustment didn’t work out as well as the team had hoped. In five innings, Samson managed only one fifty, and that dip led to him being dropped during the T20I series in Australia.

Suryakumar Yadav confirms Shubman Gill as opener, Sanju Samson slips to the middle order

Even though Sanju Samson has lost his spot for now, Suryakumar has confirmed that Sanju Samson is still very much in the fight for a place in the team, but he stressed that everyone must be flexible and ready to move around the batting order based on team needs.

Suryakumar Yadav said at the pre-match press conference, as quoted by India Today, “In terms of Sanju, when he came onto the circuit, he batted higher up the order. Now the thing is, other than the openers, I feel everyone else has to be very flexible. He really did well when he opened the innings. But Shubman has played before him in the Sri Lanka series, so he deserved to take that spot.”

With Samson under the radar, the Men in Blue went to Jitesh Sharma in the lower middle order. Jitesh had impressed everyone with his finishing skills for the RCB in IPL 2025, and then his aggressive style added a fresh option to India’s batting plans.

Read Also: ICC slaps India with huge punishment over their act in Raipur ODI vs South Africa

Suryakumar Yadav calls Sanju Samson and Jitesh Sharma a ‘Good Headache’ for India

And the Indian captain said that the team now has two wicketkeeper-batters who can play in any batting position, and that this is a great situation to have. The captain reiterated that Jitesh and Sanju both are part of the scheme of things going ahead in the shorter format of the game.

Suryakumar signed off by saying, “We gave Sanju Samson opportunities; he was ready to bat at any number. It’s good to see a player being ready to bat in any position. From 3 to 6, anywhere. I have told this to all the batters: other than the openers, everyone has to be flexible.

Both are in the scheme of things. It’s always good to have both of them as part of the squad. One can open, and one can bat lower down the order. Both can do all the roles. It’s an asset to our team and a good headache to have.”