Sanju Samson made his international debut more than a decade ago. He had his ups and downs but never managed to stake his claim at a position. Under Gautam Gambhir, he found a new life. He got insane backing. Both Suryakumar Yadav and Gambhir were vocal in backing Samson so much that they even said that they would still not drop Samson even if he scores 20 ducks.
Now that Samson has played an innings of a lifetime, no one would be more proud than the Indian captain and the head coach. Against the West Indies, Sanju Samson was the point of difference. No other Indian batter made substantial runs but Samson’s 97* took India to the semi-final, where they will now face England at the Wankhede Stadium on March 5.
Suryakumar Yadav bows down to Samson
The relationship between Suryakumar and Samson feels authentic. Under his leadership, Samson has never been out of the Indian squad. When Samson’s incredible patch came, where he hit three centuries in five innings, nobody was happier than Suryakumar, who always applauded with the loudest cheers. Now, with an exceptional innings at Eden Gardens, Suryakumar was seen bowing down to Samson right after he hit the winning runs. After the victory, Suryakumar had something special to say for Samson too.
“See, I always say, good things happen to good people who wait, who have a lot of patience. I said it just now as well when I met him. But then it’s all his hard work, what he’s been doing behind the doors when he was not playing, and he’s got the fruit of it at the perfect stage. And the way he batted, took the side completely to the victory,” said Suryakumar in post-match ceremony.
Gambhir hugging Samson
Back in 2020 when Gautam Gambhir was a pundit of the game, he said something interesting. He said that if Sanju Samson doesn’t play for India, it’s not his loss; it’s India’s loss. When Gambhir became India’s head coach, he first backed the Kerala superstar.
He was put up as the opening partner alongside Abhishek Sharma. The duo found success (individually). While India’s obsession of making Shubman Gill an all-format player came with a threat to Samson. But even then, India didn’t drop him. They made him bat in the middle-order, where he made runs but his confidence was belted.
A poor form of patch ensued before Ishan Kishan made a stunning comeback and India had no option but to move on from Samson. But as luck would have it, India circled back to Samson when the top order failed in the T20 World Cup. And being on the sidelines for a few matches have done wonders for Samson. He is hungrier than ever now. And that was shown in Kolkata.
Gambhir has been a great admirer for Samson and the moment he hugged his opener after the splendid innings, we all knew how proud the Indian head coach is of his No. 9. “He’s a world class player, we all know how good a player Sanju is,” Gambhir told reporters after the game. “It was all about backing him. When the team needed him the most – obviously today was the day – he showed his full potential.”
Cricket
Sanju Samson pulls off a Virat Kohli with match-winning 97 to set up India vs England semifinal clash
