IND vs NZ: The scoreboard at Raipur glared an ugly truth: 6/2. In just seven balls, the top-order plan fell apart. Abhishek Sharma went for a golden duck. Sanju Samson, the man given total freedom to attack, skied a simple catch after a measly six runs. Silence gripped the stadium. The experiment had failed again. But then Ishan Kishan walked in.
This wasn’t just a rescue job; it was a massive statement. Kishan, batting at No. 3, didn’t waste time finding his rhythm. The southpaw tore apart the New Zealand attack with a powerful 76 off 32 balls. He turned a 6/2 disaster into an easy chase of 209. While Sanju Samson and Sharma looked stuck, Kishan played with total clarity.
His performance forces us to ask a tough question. It’s hanging over the team just weeks before the 2026 World Cup: Is the Sanju Samson experiment actually worth the risk?
The problem with Sanju Samson isn’t a lack of talent. It’s that his scoring is all over the place. The 31-year-old’s fans point to the three centuries he smashed in the last 18 months. They have a point; when he is on, he is impossible to stop. But the numbers also show a darker side. The Kerala-born has five ducks in that same window. There is no middle ground with him. He is either a match-winner or a walking wicket.
Friday night in Raipur showed why this “all-or-nothing” approach is dangerous. In a high-pressure World Cup knockout, a score of 6/2 kills the game before the powerplay even ends. One cannot gamble on an opener whose form is a coin flip. Kishan, on the other hand, grabbed his rare chance with real hunger. Samson looks like he is lacking that spark right now. Kishan proved that a player can be aggressive without being reckless.
With the February 7 kickoff closing in, the management has a tough call to make. Do they stick with Samson’s potential, knowing he may likely fail? Or do they pivot to the man who just showed he can handle the heat?
The Verdict: Drop or Retain Sanju Samson?
DROP: The Reliability Factor World Cups are about consistency, not short cameos. Samson’s habit of throwing his wicket away in the first over puts way too much pressure on the middle order. Kishan gives the team a left-handed option who attacks without being suicidal.
RETAIN: The X-Factor. Very few players can snatch a game away in 10 balls like Samson can. If he finds his touch in a semi-final, he wins the match single-handedly. Dropping a player who recently scored three centuries feels like a knee-jerk reaction.
READ MORE: IND vs NZ: 5 Major Records Broken During India’s Historic Win In Raipur
THE FIX: A Middle Ground? Maybe the answer isn’t dropping Samson, but moving him down. If Kishan opens, Samson could slide to No. 4. The ball is older by then, and the role is clearer. But with Suryakumar Yadav owning the middle order, Samson is running out of ways to stay in the team.
