Sanju Samson to Replace Abhishek Sharma After India’s Super 8 Loss to South Africa?

India cricket team assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate has indicated that there may be some changes to the playing XI after the defeat against South Africa in the Super 8 match on Sunday. Suryakumar Yadav and his team were given a 76-run thrashing by the Proteas at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, thus ending their winning streak. After the defeat, India cricket team assistant coach ten Doeschate has indicated that whether the team will make amends to their line-up or whether they will retain the same playing XI.

Will India Change Playing XI After Heavy Super 8 Loss to South Africa?

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Sanju Samson Wicketkeeper-Batter

Sanju Samson is a prominent Indian international cricketer who plays as a right-handed wicket-keeper-batter for the Indian national team in white-ball formats.

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India Founded: 1926

The India National Cricket Team represents India in international cricket and is one of the strongest teams in the world.

During the post-match press conference, ten Doeschate talked about the possibility of including Sanju Samson in the line-up in order to retain the left-right combination. The India cricket team assistant coach said that the team will think about whether they should retain the same line-up which has been doing well in the recent past or whether some forced changes need to be made. However, the defeat against South Africa has affected India’s semi-final entry, as they are left with no choice but to win all their remaining Super 8 matches. Samson has played only one match in the T20 World Cup so far.

 India assistant coach ten Doeschate said that,

“Look, there’s a lot of inexperience in the team and you want a settled side. These guys have done it all before. They’re all fantastic players. So do you stick or twist? Do you stick with the guys who we feel have performed really well over the last 18 months and who are maybe just short of a few runs now? Or do we twist and bring in Sanju, who’s also a fantastic player and obviously helps tactically by having a right-hander at the top of the order? I’m sure that will be a talking point over the next few days going into these two very important games,”

After scoring three consecutive ducks, Abhishek scored 15 runs off 12 balls against South Africa. He struggled against the spinners and got out to Marco Jansen. His opening partner Ishan Kishan, who was playing well in the World Cup, got out for a duck.

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ICC T20 World Cup 2026: Most Runs & Wickets After India vs South Africa Match South Africa won the Super 8 match against India by 76 runs in the T20 World Cup 2026 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

by K D Mishra February 23, 2026