Former India player turned veteran commentator Aakash Chopra has said that the Indian team wouldn’t risk playing Abhishek Sharma in their T20 World Cup 2026 match against Namibia if he is not fully fit yet. However, he shared hope that Abhishek is fit and available, stating that the opener needs to be among the runs before playing Pakistan as well.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, ‘Aakash Chopra,’ he said, “The first question is whether Abhishek Sharma is available. There is no clarity. He had gone to the hospital for examination. He has returned, he is with the team, but, to be fair, it’s been many days. He hasn’t practiced at all. He is slightly troubled about his health.”

“Will India take a chance? No, if he is not 100% fit, I don’t see him playing in this game, although I wish that he plays because it’s his first World Cup. He got out to his first ball in the first match. You want him to score World Cup runs before playing Pakistan. Form is not an issue, but the World Cup runs haven’t been scored. You want that box to be ticked,” he further added.

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However, Aakash Chopra also opened up on Abhishek Sharma’s potential absence could work to both Sanju Samson and India’s advantage as well.

“If he (Abhishek) doesn’t play, it’s a great opportunity for Sanju Samson. It’s a good opportunity in both ways. One is that you are playing against Namibia, you can score runs. Secondly, he is the only batter sitting outside. He needs to regain his form. It cannot happen that a player sitting outside does not have form at all,” he said.

“If Abhishek doesn’t play and Sanju plays, I really hope Sanju scores the runs. I will have the same expectation from Ishan Kishan. Tilak Varma also didn’t score runs in the first match. It’s the first World Cup for him as well. He also needs to score runs. So he and Rinku Singh should score runs. We should bat in a way that it becomes memorable,” Aakash Chopra concluded.