IND vs WI: The 5-match T20 series between India and West Indies is going to start from Tuesday, October 6. Before this series, a big and very shocking statement of Team India's head coach Gautam Gambhir has come out. Just before the first match of the series, the biggest discussion among fans and cricket circles was whether young sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi would get a chance in the playing 11 of the first T20 match or not. Now coach Gambhir has completely lifted the curtain on this suspense and has made it clear with which opening pair the Indian team is going to take the field in the first T20.
Sanju Samson will open with Abhishek Sharma – Gautam Gambhir
Speaking on Star Sports and JioStar, head coach Gautam Gambhir made it clear that the team management will move ahead with the opening pair of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma. Gambhir said, “It is very easy to take popular decisions by listening to the outside noise, but for me, it is most important to protect the players in the dressing room and take the right decisions. We cannot suddenly ignore the impact that Sanju and Abhishek have created for the team in the last one and a half to two years. We cannot drop them just because they fail in three or four matches.
Gautam Gambhir: 🗣️
“If Vaibhav Sooryavanshi plays, then it's going to be a tough conversation between me and whoever we leave out, whether it's Abhishek Sharma or whether it's Sanju Samson. So, we can't suddenly ignore a combination that has created such an impact over the last… pic.twitter.com/zHwewXFMxY
— Saabir Zafar (@Saabir_Saabu01) October 5, 2026
Vaibhav Suryavanshi will have to wait – Gautam Gambhir
Praising Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Gambhir said that he is very talented and is in great form, but he will have to wait for his chance. Giving an example from the history of the game, Gambhir said, “No team in the world has been invincible from one World Cup to another. Playing one bad series or three bad matches neither makes any player bad nor does our team become bad. Therefore, it is most important for us to maintain continuity in the team.
Explosive starts paired with bold and audacious hitting! 💥
When #SanjuSamson & #AbhishekSharma gear up at the top, total carnage is guaranteed! ✓️
watch #INDvWI | 1st T20I 👉 TUE, 6th OCT, 6 PM pic.twitter.com/mZhSjxMNAY
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) October 5, 2026
In the year 2026, the pairing of Abhishek Sharma-Sanju Samson has created a stir.
In the year 2026, the opening pair of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma have created havoc with their bat in T20 International cricket. This year, the pair of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma have scored the highest number of 575 runs as a pair among the ICC full member countries, which makes them eligible for the 'Powerhouse Pair of 2026'. Not only this, in the list of opening combos that have scored at least 200 runs, the strike rate of this pair has been 198, which is the highest strike rate made by any opening pair in the world. This unmatched record of these two stalwarts proves that whenever both of them enter the field, it is absolutely certain that they will destroy the opposing bowlers.
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