MUMBAI— Sanju Samson has been on and off India’s T20I teams for years. He says that the turning point that made him a permanent member of the team was the unwavering faith exhibited by head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Suryakumar Yadav. In an honest interview on Ravichandran Ashwin’s YouTube channel, Samson talked about how their words of encouragement changed his life.
After the 2024 T20 World Cup, Gambhir became the head coach and Suryakumar Yadav became the captain. This was Samson’s chance. He was handed the chance to start the innings, but that move didn’t pay off right away in the series against Sri Lanka. Samson was “a little down” in the locker room after not doing well in his first two games.
At that moment, Gambhir’s advice became very important. “I told him that I didn’t take advantage of the chances I got,” Samson said. But Gambhir’s answer wasn’t what he thought it would be. “So what?” he said. I’ll kick you off the team if you get 21 ducks. The captain and coach’s faith in me has undoubtedly made me more sure of myself.
This promise was not just a one-time thing. Samson also talked about a previous interaction he had with Suryakumar Yadav during a Duleep Trophy game. The skipper told him, “There is a good opportunity coming up for you.” We have seven games planned, and I’m going to offer you all seven of them as an opener.
This constant support paid off big time. After having trouble with Sri Lanka, Samson got back on track in the next series against Bangladesh and South Africa, when he hit three T20I centuries, which is an amazing record for any batter in a single calendar year.
Samson said that being in and out of the team for almost ten years was “not easy” and that it was a frustrating time for him. He claimed that he always told himself, “Different people have different journeys.” But when Gambhir and Suryakumar Yadav came, they gave him the stability and support he needed.
Samson has played 42 T20I matches and scored 861 runs, with an average of 25.32 and a strike rate of 152.38. He had a hard time with England’s fast bowlers throwing short balls at him in India’s last T20I series, but he should be fine on the team in the future. But with the Men’s Asia Cup coming up, we’ll have to wait and see how the team management balances his slot with the return of other openers like Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal.