Sanju Samson felt his “dreams had shattered” after a poor T20I series against New Zealand just prior to the 2026 T20 World Cup, but conversations over the past two months with Sachin Tendulkar reassured him that a turnaround wasn’t far away.
Sanju Samson was not even in the playing XI when India began their T20 World Cup campaign, having been benched after a disappointing bilateral series against New Zealand in January in which he scored only 46 runs across five matches. Only a stomach illness to Abhishek Sharma gave him a window of opportunity, but Samson was back warming the bench once a fit-again Abhishek returned to the XI. However, fortune eventually favoured him when India decided to split a left-heavy top three after off-spinners troubled the Indian top order.
“I have been in constant touch with Sachin Tendulkar sir. When I was sitting on the outside in Australia, not getting a game, I thought, ‘what is the mindset required now?’ So I reached out to Sir and had long conversations with him. Even yesterday, he called me up to check how I was feeling. Getting guidance from someone like him – what more can I ask for? That clarity, that game awareness, that game sense, he helped me develop. I am very grateful to those who supported me,” Samson said on Sunday.
Samson was at his free-flowing best in the three must-win games for India. It is hard to pick a favourite, as he barely put a foot wrong in any of them.
It was the kind of performance a nation of more than a billion had long yearned for from the prodigiously talented cricketer, and it came at just the right time.
Samson called it God’s grace, while also giving himself a bit of credit, saying he had the courage to dream of becoming the hero for the nation even when things were not going right for him.
“It feels like a dream. Very happy, very grateful. Out of words, going through emotions. Feels a bit surreal,” Samson said.
