Sanju Samson or Vaibhav Sooryavanshi: a debate that has resurfaced after the Indian Premier League 2026 season. After being in and out of the side midway through the T20 World Cup, the former found the right spot as an opener and became the Player of the Tournament. Samson followed it up with a decent IPL. Meanwhile, the teenager Sooryavanshi has already played some blistering knocks during the U-19 cricket tournaments and won the Orange Cap in the IPL.

After being dropped from the tour to Zimbabwe, Samson is back in the side against Afghanistan in the recently concluded series, where he scored a couple of half-centuries. Former Indian women’s cricketer Anjum Chopra said that Samson should be allowed to play freely, and before Sooryavanshi gets his turn, other players have also worked hard.

“I think we should let Sanju Samson be,” the cricketer-turned-commentator said to . “Playing for India always comes with pressure and competition, and every player understands that they need to keep performing. But no one likes to feel a constant question mark hanging over their place in the team. Sanju should be allowed to play freely.”

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“Sooryavanshi is a great talent. He has already made it to the Indian setup and will remain in contention. But we should remember that players such as Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Rinku Singh have also worked hard and earned their opportunities,” she concluded.

“From Vaibhav’s point of view, it was again a very clear conversation that he has to wait for his opportunity. We know the kind of talent he has. We know what he can do, but again, someone who’s done extremely well over a period of two years (Sanju Samson), obviously, he will always be ahead of someone who’s just walked into the team. So, whenever he gets that run, he will get a longer run as well, and that is what Indian cricket is all about. You want competition, you want that talent in the dressing room, but sometimes that’s how cricket goes, whether you’re a 15-year-old or a 30-year-old. When you have to wait for your opportunity, you have to wait for your opportunity,” head coach Gautam Gambhir said at the post-match press conference after the Afghanistan game.