The wicket-keeper of the Indian side, Sanju Samson, has made an incredible comeback in international cricket, especially in the shortest format, through the four-match T20I series against South Africa away and before that in the three-match series against Bangladesh at home.
Sanju Samson has smashed 810 T20I runs in 33 innings at an average of just below 30 and a strike rate of 155.17 with the help of three centuries and two half-centuries at the best score of 111. In the ODI format, the right-handed batter smashed 510 runs in 14 innings at an average of 56.66 and a strike rate of nearly 100, shouldering on three half-centuries and one century.
The 30-year-old has credited his national side’s head coach, Gautam Gambhir, for the recent success because the latter supported him in tough times to display the much-needed confidence in expressing himself with the stick.
“By God’s grace, something special has happened”- Sanju Samson
In the ongoing year, Sanju Samson has notched up 436 runs in 12 innings in the T20I format at an average of 43.60 and a strike rate of more than 180 with the help of three centuries and one half-century. This has come on the back of his excellent time with the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the 2024 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
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During an interaction with the former captain of South Africa, Ab de Villiers on the latter’s YouTube channel recently, the wicket-keeper batter acknowledged the significant role of the current head coach of the Blue Brigade as he was one of the reasons for his success.
“When he came to the Indian team, in the dressing room, he told me ‘Sanju, I know what you have. You have something special. I am going to get back to you no matter what. He told me to walk in, go out there, and express myself in every inning. That kind of communication from the coach gave me clarity and confidence.” Sanju Samson expressed this in the video.
The leader of the Royals franchise in the IPL has collected 7293 runs in 277 innings at an average of just below 30 and a strike rate of around 137.03 with six centuries and 47 half-centuries.
The veteran heightened that he was extremely disappointed with his constant failure and wanted to repay the faith that the head coach of the side had displayed in him.
“After a few games of dismissals, you feel pressure because you have a guy who’s backing you, and you are not performing. I thought ‘Common Sanju, you need to show something and repay the faith the coach has in.” Sanju Samson shed light. “By God’s grace, something special has happened. I want to continue scoring runs and win games for my country.”
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He recalled how he maintained a strong relationship with Gambhir, the former World Cup-winning member of the Indian side, during his stint with the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the IPL before his debut in international cricket.
“Yeah, it has been. I had a decent relationship with Gautam Gambhir right from a young age. My first IPL team was KKR. When I was 14, they picked me on their B team. At the age of 17, I made it to the KKR main side, and that was when KKR won the Championship under Gautam Gambhir.” Sanju Samson concluded.
He will now aim to keep the constant form going in the future besides leading the Rajasthan Royals to their second IPL title after a wait of nearly 17 years.