Mumbai: “I am not here to score lots and lots of runs. I’m here to score a small amount of runs which are very effective for the team.”
These were Sanju Samson’s words of T20 wisdom four years ago, the burden of which he still carries. The underlying sentiment of this quote is open to interpretation. Every time Samson fails, he gives the impression of being a man in a hurry. When he is in a rut, even his technical shortcomings seem like a function of his mental urge to step on the gas.
Against England on Wednesday in the 1st of the 5-match T20I series, Samson was made to respect the conditions with a hint of swing on offer. Batting on 1 off 6, the opener lost his battle of patience: he reached out against Saqib Mahmood without moving his feet and handed out a catch to backward point. His previous two dismissals were also early in his innings when he failed to counter Ireland left-arm pacer Jai Moondra’s over-the-wicket angle.
Samson’s sequence of poor scores now reads 1, 0, 5. His previous sequence? 89 (46), 89 (42) and 97* (50). That was his finest spell in international cricket, one in which the Kerala batter took it on his shoulders to help India lift the T20 World Cup title. Channeling the burden of his talent, the player of the tournament dominated bowlers for three virtual knockout matches in a row. When on song, Samson is light on his feet, his backfoot trigger functions in perfection and the fan-favourite holds the stage.
It’s inexplicable how Samson fails to build on this form over any considerable stretch of time. Samson’s bad before the good was separated by an IPL in which he was a mixed bag.
Samson has faced similar dips in form before. His scores of 6, 24, 0, 6 and 10 against New Zealand in the lead up to this year’s World Cup forced him out of the playing eleven at the start of the tournament. This, even after his high potential was rated above the consistent Shubman Gill for the opener’s slot.
Samson had experienced a similar inconsistent scoring pattern last year when English bowlers led by Jofra Archer repeatedly troubled him with the short ball, resulting in five failures in a row. In his innings preceding that home series against England, Samson had scored 109* (56) against South Africa in South Africa. The volatility of T20 notwithstanding, such wild swings in fortunes — sublime one day, unremarkable the next — have prevented Samson’s international career from taking flight.
Sooryavanshi hot on the heels
The World Cup high is now a thing of the past. With the prodigious Vaibhav Sooryavanshi waiting for his turn, Samson would feel the pressure to arrest his sliding form before it’s too late.
Sitting in judgement, the Indian team management would also face the same level of pressure to give Sooryavanshi the first taste of international cricket.
To blood him in and give him a chance to announce himself with the same statement performances he showed in the IPL. In fact, Samson saw it from close quarters in IPL 2025 how Sooryavanshi dimmed everyone else at Rajasthan Royals, once he got going. Similarly in IPL 2026, Yashasvi Jaiswal struggled to stay true to his potential when Sooryavanshi began powering his strokes from the other end.
Samson’s “small but effective runs” may have been a good explanation for 2022. That was a Sanju Samson who would delight in the IPL, his cameos were misunderstood by India. Now, he’s India’s T20 regular, a vital part of a
top order that blazes the trail with quick and match-winning runs. One one hand is Abhishek Sharma who is unafraid to go aerial with his strokes and finds more sixes than fours. Ishan Kishan belts the ball powerfully with no force able to contain him for too long.
Samson showed his big match temperament in the World Cup. He’s only got to learn to stay on top longer.
