'Sanju Samson has put himself there for a leadership role' - Ravi Shastri endorses CSK star for India T20I captaincy

Former head coach Ravi Shastri has backed the current Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batter Sanju Samson to take over as India’s T20I captain ahead of the 2028 T20 World Cup. 

Shastri believes Samson has the perfect blend of being a modern-day T20 batter and possessing the leadership qualities required to succeed at the top level, something he has previously shown in the Indian Premier League (IPL) with the Rajasthan Royals. However, it all depends on where Suryakumar Yadav is in his career. Should India need

a new captain for the future, Shastri’s money is on Samson to take over the reins.

“India, come the next (T20) World Cup (in 2028), might be looking for a new captain, depending on how Surya goes over the next couple of years. But Sanju Samson has put himself there for a leadership role because he's done that in the past for Rajasthan (Royals).  And he's a certainty in the side, at the top of the order, extremely destructive. So I see him, this is just the start of something more you'll see from Sanju over the next two or three years,” Ravi Shastri said on The ICC Review.

Before he became India’s talisman with the bat in the T20 format, Samson used to get a lot of flak for being inconsistent. Shastri, however, believes those days are long behind the right-handed batter. The CSK batter showcased his excellence in the recently concluded T20 World Cup by scoring 321 runs at a strike-rate of 199.37. He is also having a great debut season in Chennai, having already hit two centuries during the 2026 IPL season. 

“I think he (Samson) has put a lid on all those question marks. There was always ability. People would, in fact, be disappointed because he wouldn't do justice to that ability. But my word this season, the way he's played after his performance in the T20 World Cup where single-handedly he almost won India games, the big games, the quarter-finals (West Indies, Super 8), semi-finals, the final, and the way he stepped up and the maturity he's showing now in the IPL, makes him a clear case as far as I'm concerned for leadership in the future,” he added.

India’s T20 captaincy remains a hot talking point in the media, with reports also linking current Punjab Kings and former Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Shreyas Iyer to take over the role in the near future. 

The Men in Blue’s first T20I series after the IPL will be a two-match series against Ireland. They will then travel to England to take part in a five-match series which starts in July.