Justice has finally been done with Sanju Samson. Over the last few years, fans of the right-handed batter desperately wanted the team management and selectors to show faith in Samson and do justice by giving him constant chances in the playing XI across formats. However, as fate would have it, it was Samson himself who had done the “justice” with himself by realising his talent and playing to his potential in the T20 World Cup 2026. When the tournament began on February 7, no one would have expected the 31-year-old to play a key role in India’s third T20 World Cup triumph, considering he was out of the lineup.
Just prior to the World Cup, Samson was way off colour in the series against New Zealand. His dip coincided with Ishan Kishan smacking runs for fun, and this led to Kishan pipping Samson in the race for being the frontline opener alongside Abhishek Sharma.
Samson came into the lineup for India’s second group-stage game against Namibia, but it was nothing more than a stopgap as Abhishek suffered a stomach infection. Samson scored a quickfire 22, but he quickly went out of the playing XI as Abhishek regained fitness. At this stage, it looked set that Samson would not play another game in the World Cup.
However, it is then that destiny truly kicked in. South Africa hammered India in the Super 8s match, and both Abhishek and Ishan looked clueless against the off-spin in the powerplay. The growing ploy of opposition teams using off-spinners worried head coach Gautam Gambhir, which led to Samson regaining his place in the lineup and Kishan dropping to No.3.
From here on, Samson did not look back as he played three match-winning knocks against West Indies (97 not out in Super 8s), England (89 in the semi-final) and New Zealand (89 in the final) to help India defend the title. Samson also won the Player of the Tournament accolade for scoring 321 runs in five matches, and the T20 World Cup’s tenth edition can be seen as a new lease of life for the Kerala batter.
Gautam Gambhir’s message
After the T20 World Cup win, Samson revealed that Gambhir met him in the gym following the debacle against South Africa at the Narendra Modi Stadium in the Super8s, and confirmed that the batter would come back into the side for the next few matches.
The former Rajasthan Royals captain in the IPL also stated that he leaned on experience to play match-winning knocks and realise the potential of batting deep and taking the team over the line.
“Gautam bhai met me in the gym, and that’s where he told me, ‘Sanju, be ready, you are going to play the next game’. I was like, Ab aane do. Honestly, I don’t like competing with my own teammates for a spot. But once we are together and fighting for a cause, I bring out the best in me. The New Zealand series went bad for me, I never perform well when I am trying to fight for a place with my teammates for my place,” said Samson in a conversation with the host broadcaster.
“Very happy things turned out well in the World Cup for me. Experience plays a big role, and more than experience, I have led an IPL franchise for five years. I think about a lot of different scenarios. Those thoughts kept on giving me clarity.
Lastly, Samson was candid enough to admit that the batter was finally able to do justice with the talent he has.
When the anchor asked Samson about whether the batter did justice, the batter replied, “Yes, absolutely.”
