Aakash Chopra, a former Team India opener, supported T20 World Cup 2026 star Sanju Samson to keep his purple patch and be the Orange Cap winner in IPL 2026 (Via Crex Instagram handle). The 31-year-old is leaving behind a T20 World Cup to be remembered as he is the top scorer in India with 321 runs in their unbelievable title performance.
The right-hander made a hat-trick of half-centuries, the half-century in the semifinal and the final. When the IPL 2026 off-season happened, Samson was on the headlines as he was sold by the Rajasthan Royalties (RR) to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
Coincidentally, the crusader has never been the winner of the Orange Cap in his 13 years in the IPL.
The winner of IPL 2026 according to Chopra was his Purple Cap winner, who is none other than the legendary Jasprit Bumrah. The champion pacer has just completed a spectacular T20 world cup 2026 campaign, a campaign that ended with 14 wickets to his name on a Player of the match 4/15 spell in the final against New Zealand.
There was no hesitation on the part of Chopra in selecting RR opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as the Emerging Player of IPL 2026. He began his first season with a spectacular 252 runs on seven appearances last year and it has only been uphill since then since the teenage sensation starred in India Under-19 World Cup victory earlier this year.
Aakash Chopra backs first-time winner in IPL 2026
Delhi Capitals (DC) have been selected by Aakash Chopra to make it and finally win their maiden IPL title in the 2026 edition. The ex-opener was also in support of the Mumbai Indians (MI), Royal challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Punjab Kings (PBKS), and DC as the four finalists of IPL 2026.
MI is the co-leader in successful franchises with 5 IPL championships although RCB secured their first title in 17 years last season. On the other hand, PBKS lost a golden chance to end their own trophy curse in IPL 2025, and become runners-up.
DC and PBKS are the only IPL franchises that have participated in 18 seasons without any title. The latter have been in just a single final, which was in 2020, and they were defeated by MI by a wide margin.
DC was not able to reach the playoffs in IPL 2025 after being fifth in the standings, a fourth consecutive season.
