'You will do injustice to whoever you make sit out' - Former opener on India's weakness ahead of Asia Cup 2025

Published - 08 Sept 2025, 11:45 IST | Updated - 08 Sept 2025, 11:59 IST

Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra feels not featuring Sanju Samson in India's XI for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025 will be wrong and unjust. Samson has played 42 T20Is for India and strikes at 152.38.

Chopra highlighted Samson's centuries in the previous T20Is. For the unversed, Samson, who is one of the 15 squad members for the Asia Cup, has registered all three of his T20I tons in his past 10 innings.

"Is there any weakness? In my opinion, you will do an injustice to whoever you make sit out. That's the weakness. It doesn't sound very right, but it is what it is. If you make Sanju Samson sit out, you feel you are doing wrong, as you were making him open consistently and he was doing well. He scored three hundreds in 12 matches," stated Chopra in a video on his YouTube channel.

The cricketer-turned-commentator observed the dilemma the Indian management will have to face for the upcoming tournament in terms of the selection of players such as Rinku Singh, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel.

"If you make Rinku Singh sit out, you will again feel you are doing wrong. If you are unable to fit in Kuldeep Yadav, it will be a problem. If you are unable to bat Axar Patel up the order, it will seem like you are doing an injustice. So, it's a tight rope to walk. Whatever you do, you can be criticized. That is not a weakness, but this is what it is," he observed.

He noted that the Indian team is in a league of their own as compared to the other participants. Chopra suggested India to challenge for the title.

"This team has started batting with a different template consistently. This is the team that plays attacking cricket. If you are a cut above the rest, then it must reflect in your performances. So strategy for India, in my opinion, should be to just go for absolute glory," added the cricketer-turned-commentator.

SKY's stunning reaction after witnessing Sanju Samson's fans

India are placed in Group A alongside Pakistan, Oman and United Arab Emirates. The eight-team tournament is set to commence on Tuesday, September 9.