Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra has pointed out that Sanju Samson gets out in a similar pattern, which is a concerning thing for the team ahead of the World Cup. Chopra recalled that Samson got out on the short deliveries in the five-match series against England in 2025.

Samson could only manage 51 runs in five games at an average of 10.50 against England. Similarly, Samson was often bowled while going back in the crease in the five-match T20I series against New Zealand.

The Kerala batter could only manage 46 runs in the five games against the Kiwis at an average of 9.20. Samson was caught at third man in the fifth T20I on Saturday after scoring only six runs.

Aakash Chopra said on ESPN Cricinfo, “I think now this is twice in about 12 months. It all started with that England series. Very rarely do you find a top class batter developing a pattern, especially in the shortest format of the game. He got dismissed five times in the same fashion – short ball caught in the deep. Here also, if you see his dismissals versus pace, there is an eerie pattern to it.

“You go deep inside the crease even before the ball is bowled. You try and play the ball, but the front foot doesn’t go anywhere. As a result, your bat actually closes every single time you play. He got lucky with an outside edge once in Thiruvananthapuram. In the previous game again, he closed the bat a bit too early, so again a pattern has developed,” the 48-year-old went on to elaborate.

Chopra said that more than the lack of runs, it is the similar pattern of dismissals, which is a concern for Samson.

He concluded, “More than the lack of runs, just the pattern and how out of sync he looked in those five innings is what actually sealed his fate.”

India will begin their T20 World Cup campaign against the USA on February 7.