IND vs NAM : Last chance for Sanju Samson! Abhishek discharged from hospital, how will Indian team playing 11

By Samira Vishwas On Feb 12, 2026

After a resounding victory over USA in the T20 World Cup, the defending champions’ next stop is New Delhi, where they will play their second group match against Namibia on Thursday. Indian batting was disappointing against USA at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium. Now, the team will try to go all out on the pitch at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium. However, India’s concern more than the match against Namibia is opening batsman Abhishek Sharma, who was discharged from hospital on Wednesday but is still not fit.

Abhishek is hospitalized since Monday due to stomach infection and fever. Although his participation in this match will be minimal, the team management wants him to be fully fit before the big match against Pakistan on February 15. Meanwhile, in Abhishek’s absence, this match could be a golden opportunity for Sanju Samson to prove himself. Due to constant failures, he was dropped from the playing eleven and replaced by Ishan Kishan, who is currently in excellent form.

Before the IND vs NAM match, the Namibian captain made serious allegations! Amid ICC questions ahead of match against India

Ishan was hurt by Jasprit Bumrah’s ball during practice on Wednesday, which forced him to consult a doctor. However, he later returned to batting. “Sanju is fine now. He’s understanding his role in the team and is doing well in practice,” said assistant coach Ryan Denn. Now, about the match against Namibia, on paper, the difference in quality between the two teams is quite significant. Namibia has recently failed to make an impact against an associate team like the Netherlands at the same ground. Hence, India can look at this match as a kind of warm-up before the big match.

India will want to bat first and allow their top order to play freely. Namibia’s bowling attack could also be challenged by the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy team’s batsmen. It will be a tough challenge for Namibia to stop a strong Indian batting line-up. They will have to face the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakraborty and Hardik Pandya in their batting line-up.

Abhishek Sharma battled a stomach-related illness and did not come out to train on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Sanju Samson had a 30-odd minute hit against the fast bowlers. Would you like to see him play against Namibia? pic.twitter.com/73pWYQEVa1
— Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) February 11, 2026

Indian team

Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Verma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dubey, Akshar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Siraj, Washington Sundar, Varun Chakraborty, Rinku Singh.

Namibia team

Gerhard Erasmus (captain), Jan Balt, Jan Green, Malan Kruger, Dylan Leicher, Laurence Steenkamp, Jan Frylink, Jan Nicol Lofty-Eaton, William Myerberg, JJ Smit, Jacques Brassel, Max Hingo, Bernard Scholz, Ben Shikongo, Ruben Trumpelman.