T20 World Cup 2026-winning captain Suryakumar Yadav revealed what he told a struggling Sanju Samson after the series against New Zealand, which allowed the latter to regain confidence and find form. The Kerala keeper-batter was named the Player of the Tournament for his match-winning knocks in the final Super 8 game vs WI, semi-final vs ENG and final vs NZ. Following India’s win, SKY revealed what he had told Samson before the T20 WC and how the latter had been selfless throughout the tournament.
‘We want same Sanju Samson’
In an interview to The Indian Express, Suryakumar revealed that Sanju had approached him after the series against New Zealand to ask what the team expected from him in the T20 World Cup. The captain said that in response, the keeper-batter was told that the team needed the same Samson who tears apart the opposition with his attack. SKY also spilled the beans on how he kept Sanju Samson motivated when he was warming the bench.
“Sanju came with a lot going for him — a keeper who can bat at the top. I remember he came to me once and asked: “Just tell me what you want from me in this team.” We said: we want the same Sanju Samson we’ve seen tear attacks apart. And then he told the whole team — we will keep playing what the team wants before what we want. Only then will we achieve something special. When he was not playing I told him: this is a difficult phase but you have to take it in stride. If God has written something for you, you will get it. He was preparing himself — if the opportunity comes, grab it, and the whole world will witness it,” Suryakumar Yadav said.
Samson had no idea that he would have a crucial role to play after being snubbed out of the T20 WC opener against USA. He fared rather poorly in the game against Namibia and Zimbabwe, registering scores of 22 and 24. However, it was during the knockout stages and crucial matches where Samson proved his worth. His match-winning knocks of 97*, 89 and 89 against West Indies (in Super 8), England (in the semi-final) and New Zealand (in the final) propelled him to being named the Player of the Series, with 321 runs to his name from 5 innings, averaging 80.25 and boasting of a strike rate of 199.37.
SKY acknowledged that the three match-winning innings from Samson changed the tournament for India. He lavished praise on Sanju for being a team man and not chasing personal milestones by aiming for a hundred.
“Absolutely. He scored 97, 89, 89 in the big games. If he wanted, he could have easily scored hundreds in all three — he was playing that fast. But if you take 10 balls to go from 89 to 100 when you could do it in three or four, you’re stealing six balls from the second batter. Dube scored 28 off six balls, 26 off eight. That was only possible because Sanju didn’t chase his hundred,” SKY noted.
