Ishan Kishan rejoined the India cricket team for the New Zealand series after playing his final T20I match of 2023. His consistent batting performance throughout the season brought him selection for both the New Zealand series and T20 World Cup 2026. He helped Jharkhand achieve their first Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy victory. During the major event Kishan established himself as India's primary starting player while Sanju Samson missed multiple games. The situation shifted when Samson returned to play as an opener and won the Player of the Tournament award at the T20 World Cup. Sanju Samson of CSK shared his thoughts about Ishan Kishan's Thiruvananthapuram century during a podcast with Abhinav Mukund. Samson discovered that he needed to give up his India playing XI spot after watching Kishan's century performance in Thiruvananthapuram. After becoming the first player to achieve three centuries during one calendar year Samson experienced many career successes and failures. Shubman Gill who returned from injury took Samson's opening position before the major tournament which forced him to bat in an unfamiliar lower batting position. Kishan received praise from Samson because he showed outstanding performance during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy which made him deserving of his selection to India's T20 World Cup 2026 team. Sanju said on a podcast: “In Trivandrum when he scored that hundred, I was like ‘Sanju now you just give it to him boss he deserves it more than you do. You got your chances you didn’t score runs but there is someone who is in tremendous form’. He has come out of Mushtaq Ali has done everything right to reach there and he scored a century also just before the World Cup starts, so now I think, ‘Sanju you just leave it’.” Kishan returned to T20I competition after he spent time away from the team since 2023 because his domestic accomplishments proved his worth to the national team. His efforts to succeed brought him success. He maintained exceptional performance levels for India throughout the T20 World Cup. He scored 317 runs in 9 innings at an average of 35.22 and an impressive strike rate of 193.29. Kishan provided India with batting stability by playing primarily at the number three position. Sanju Samson became the most valuable player for India during the tournament. He did not expect to play a major role after missing out on the T20 World Cup opener against USA. He scored 22 and 24 in his two games against Namibia and Zimbabwe. Samson performed well during the knockout stage and important matches. His match-winning scores of 97*, 89 and 89 against West Indies in the Super 8, England in the semi-final, and New Zealand in the final helped him win the Player of the Series award. He completed 321 runs from 5 innings while achieving an 80.25 batting average and 199.37 strike rate.