Sanju Samson’s exclusion from India’s playing XI for the second T20 International against England at Old Trafford has sparked a heated debate over the selection. Samson, who was crowned Player of the Tournament during India’s victorious T20 World Cup 2026 campaign earlier this year, was dropped in Manchester after a brief spell of three single-figure scores in the tours of Ireland and England.

His exit opened the door for a historic debut for the talented 15-year-old batsman. Vaibhav Suryavanshi becomes India’s youngest international cricketer. While Kishore’s inclusion was widely celebrated, the decision to leave out the established wicketkeeper-batsman left former India cricketer-turned-commentator Sanjay Manjrekar completely stunned.

To express his frustration, Manjrekar took to social media to question the team management’s tactical logic, initially hoping that a hidden physical ailment was the real reason behind the dynamic batsman’s sudden absence.

Manjrekar posted on Twitter, “Great to see Vaibhav in India colours. But what about Samson! Dropped?? Are you kidding me! No, I think, he’s injured. Let’s hope it’s an injury. Or this is the strangest selection. If you wanted to bring Vaibhav, you could have easily batted at number three.”

Manjrekar’s nervousness reflected a broader sentiment among pundits, who felt Samson deserved a longer role, especially given his recent World Cup achievements. Instead of replacing the in-form asset, critics argued that the team hierarchy could have easily accommodated Suryavanshi at the top of the order while pushing Samson to number three to retain middle-order experience.

As the match progressed. India ultimately lost by four wickets Only increased scrutiny around the tactical structure of the squad.

Rajat Patidar for T20?

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan focused on how the team failed to take advantage of a fast start to cross the 200-run mark, ultimately finishing at 190 for 7.

Beyond the immediate results at Old Trafford, Pathan pointed to a structural imbalance that is beginning to plague the national side. With Suryavanshi joining the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Tilak Verma, India’s top six is ​​filled with left-handed batsmen.

The team management had earlier fixed a similar issue midway through the T20 World Cup. Sanju Samson recalled to disrupt top three In which left handed players were continuously included.

According to the former all-rounder, this tactical uniformity plays directly into the hands of the opposition bowling attack. He urged the selectors to take a look at Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Rajat Patidar, who recently enjoyed a stellar Indian Premier League season, scoring 501 runs at an explosive strike rate of 192.69.

“Given the number of left-handed batsmen in the Indian T20 team right now, it is even more reason for Team India to consider promoting Rajat Patidar,” Pathan said. “I really hope he gets a chance, especially since Team India still has a lot of time to experiment before the next T20 World Cup.”

With England taking a 1-0 lead in the five-match series, the pressure is increasing on captain Shreyas Iyer and the team management. As the series progresses to Trent Bridge, the selectors face a difficult task in balancing the desire to blood young talent like Suryavanshi with the need to protect proven performers like Samson.

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