The combined company would have more than 127 million customers and could be in a stronger footing to compete against the No. 1 and No. 2 wireless players, Verizon Communications Inc (VZ.N) and AT&T Inc (T.N), amid a race to expand offerings in so-called 5G wireless technology. Since then, Sprint's shares lost more than a fifth of their value, amid investor concerns over how the company can compete effectively under the weight of its long-term debt of more than $32 billion. Sprint declined to comment, while T-Mobile did not immediately respond to requests for comment.