Karthik urges India to persist with Samson-Abhishek opening pair

After a stuttering start to their ICC 2026 T20 World Cup campaign, India appear to have finally struck the right batting balance. With every member of the top six making a telling contribution to the emphatic win over Zimbabwe in Chennai, the Men-in-Blue now head into a winner-take-all clash against the West Indies at Eden Gardens with renewed confidence and clarity over their best combination.

It was the revamped opening duo of Abhishek Sharma (55) and Sanju Samson (24) who laid the platform with an aggressive start. They were followed by fluent knocks from Ishan Kishan (38), Suryakumar Yadav (33), Hardik Pandya (50 not out) and Tilak Varma (44 not out), as India racked up 256/4, the highest total of this edition and the second-highest in the tournament’s history.

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Former India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik witnessed the carnage firsthand and backed the left-right opening combination of Abhishek and Samson to continue for Sunday’s virtual quarter-final in Kolkata.

“India haven’t been getting those opening starts, so when someone like Sanju and Abhishek open together, it’s a lot of pressure having a right-left combination,” Karthik told ICC Digital after the match.

“They (Zimbabwe) in fact didn’t bowl off-spin because probably Sanju was there. Otherwise, Sikander Raza is known to take the new ball. The fact that he didn’t tell you that they were worried that the right-hander was there, so the matchup is working in favour of India.

“Sanju got going soon after Abhishek absolutely smashed it, and that’s something that we are so used to seeing. And I think at times we take it for granted that what he’s doing is special, and it’s hard to be consistent, which he was.

“Yes, a bit of a blip at the start of the World Cup, but when he comes good, India is always cruising to a fantastic scope,” Karthik analysed.

For Samson, it was only his second outing of the tournament, and the right-hander revealed that he had been in constant conversation with Abhishek at the crease, guiding the top-ranked T20I batter through his most impactful knock of the campaign.

“We keep it very simple. He keeps asking me, Paaji (brother), what is the wicket doing,” Samson told ICC Digital.

“I tell him nothing and to just see the ball and swing your bat, nothing else, so I really enjoy batting with him. We both complement each other really well, so very happy we could actually give India a great start today,” the Kerala batter added.

Another major positive for India was the performance of Tilak, who came up with an explosive unbeaten 44 off just 16 balls in a new role at No.6. Varma had previously occupied the No.3 position in India’s first five matches of the tournament, producing mixed returns.

However, he appeared far more comfortable in the finisher’s role at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, clearing the ropes four times in a blistering cameo.

“I always say that whatever team needs, I’m up for it,” Varma said when asked about his preferred batting position.

“So I’ve done the same role for the last four years in IPL for Mumbai Indians, and also I’ve done a few games for the Indian team. So I’m up for it. Whatever the team needs, I’m up. And according to the situation, I can adjust.

“But as I said before, I was just waiting for one innings. So I am really grateful to God for that. Right time it has been given, but I am up for it. I am pretty confident now that going forward I can win the games for the team,” he added.