All posts tagged: Sanju Samson T20 World Cup

‘The meme is true; if there’s a Mallu in the team, India will never lose’ – Varun Chakaravarthy on Sanju ‘chetta’ Samson | Cricket News

‘The meme is true; if there’s a Mallu in the team, India will never lose’ – Varun Chakaravarthy on Sanju ‘chetta’ Samson | Cricket News

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2 min readUpdated: Mar 16, 2026 01:49 PM IST For Varun Chakaravarthy, finishing as top wicket taker at the T20 World Cup, alongside the talsmanic Jasprit Bumrah was the happiest moment. But the true miracle, the humble bowler would say at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) awards night on Sunday, was watching Sanju “chetta” Samson, and how he went about shepherding India’s three 200+ totals in last their last three knockout matches. “There’s a meme that’s gotten popular. It says, ‘If there’s a Mallu involved in a World Cup we never lose. It’s true. The masterstroke was getting him back into the XI,” Chakaravarthy said. Personally, after 2021, Chakaravarthy hadn’t imagined this would be the story. Chakaravarthy was pretty much out of reckoning for selection to the Indian team for a lengthy period after a forgettable outing in the 2021 T20 World Cup, in which India had failed to make it to the knockouts. “If someone had asked me where we would be in next 5 years, you wouldn’t imagine this,” …

‘Let it come’: Gautam Gambhir reveals Sanju Samson’s reaction after getting to know he’ll play vs Zimbabwe in T20 World Cup | Cricket News

‘Let it come’: Gautam Gambhir reveals Sanju Samson’s reaction after getting to know he’ll play vs Zimbabwe in T20 World Cup | Cricket News

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2 min readMar 15, 2026 04:54 PM IST India head coach Gautam Gambhir lavished praise on T20 World Cup Player of the Tournament Sanju Samson, revealing when he told the player he would be playing the crucial Super 8 clash vs Zimbabwe after not finding place in some of the initial games of the tournament. “I conveyed it to him in the gym. In fact, we were both training together and I just told him that you’ll be playing against Zimbabwe, and he said, ‘let it come.’ That’s the kind of casual conversation we have. It’s not like a head coach and player’s relationship. It’s a relationship where most of our one-on-one conversations happen during practice sessions,” Gambhir said on Jio Star. “We know what Sanju can do, there was never any doubt about his talent and explosiveness. If he gets going, he can win you the game in the first six overs,” he added. When given a chance, Sanju exploded with 97 runs vs West Indies in a virtual quarterfinal and then brought up …

‘I was absolutely broken…’: Sanju Samson opens up about not finding place in India’s XI in early stages of T20 World Cup | Cricket News

‘I was absolutely broken…’: Sanju Samson opens up about not finding place in India’s XI in early stages of T20 World Cup | Cricket News

Published by Webster

3 min readUpdated: Mar 14, 2026 10:22 PM IST The T20 World Cup’s player of the tournament Sanju Samson wasn’t even in the scheme of things when the tournament began but as the event progressed, a combination of India’s stuttering start, tweak in combination and luck played an important part in the opener’s return to the Playing XI. In a recent interaction, Sanju revealed that when he wasn’t getting into the team in the initial stages, it left him broken. “I was too desperate knowing that my dream is so near. But was the team still trying some combinations? So, is Sanju there or not there? So, that kind of feeling played in my mind at that time. I was absolutely broken because my dream was to win the World Cup and I am not even in the XI. So, actually I was gone away for 5-6 days and I started rebuilding myself. Started preparing myself knowing you never know what the game want to give back to you,” he said during the India Today …

‘Sanju Samson’s a freak, always liked his style’: Kevin Pietersen raves about India opener’s batting | Cricket News

‘Sanju Samson’s a freak, always liked his style’: Kevin Pietersen raves about India opener’s batting | Cricket News

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3 min readMar 10, 2026 12:49 PM IST English batting legend Kevin Pietersen hailed India opener Sanju Samson as a “freak” talent following his spell-binding show in the T20 World Cup final against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Breaking a heap of records with his third consecutive half-century in the World Cup, Samson lit up India’s knockout procession in the tournament with a 46-ball 89 in the final, laced with eight sixes. Samson became only the third man after Shahid Afridi and Virat Kohli to smash fifties in the semi-final and final of a World Cup edition, in this case scoring 89 on both occasions. Samson’s tally made him the first to total 150-plus runs in the semi-final and final of a series while also registering the highest-ever score in the summit clash across 10 editions. Speaking to The Telegraph during the World Cup final where Samson belted the Kiwi bowlers, Pietersen explained why he regarded the India wicket-keeper as a special talent. I think we need to get Sanju Samson …

‘He made Suryakumar bow’: Sanju Samson is the main reason for India reaching T20 WC final, says former opener | Cricket News

‘He made Suryakumar bow’: Sanju Samson is the main reason for India reaching T20 WC final, says former opener | Cricket News

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3 min readUpdated: Mar 7, 2026 10:50 AM IST Former India opener Sadagoppan Ramesh hailed Sanju Samson’s knockouts exploits as the primary reason why the Men in Blue qualified for a second successive T20 World Cup final on Thursday. In a stunning redemption after starting the tournament on the bench due to poor form, Samson made amends as he powered India to a rampaging start in the semi-final against England at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Despite losing opening partner Abhishek Sharma early, Samson continued his onslaught and ripped apart the English bowling attack. Samson totalled 89 off only 42 balls, powering India to 253 for seven in 20 overs. That proved to be just above par on a batting beauty as England threatened Suryakumar Yadav & Co. with a strong response led by Jacob Bethell’s century before falling only seven runs short. ALSO READ | The making of Sanju Samson: ‘The ball left the bat unlike anyone else’ “India should thank the South African cricket team. It was only after that loss that the …

‘Sanju Samson is the most loved cricketer’: India opener’s fan following similar to Dhoni, Kohli and Rohit, says Dinesh Karthik | Cricket News

‘Sanju Samson is the most loved cricketer’: India opener’s fan following similar to Dhoni, Kohli and Rohit, says Dinesh Karthik | Cricket News

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4 min readMar 4, 2026 09:49 AM IST India wicket-keeper Sanju Samson’s redemption has got the cricket world talking since the weekend’s pulsating Super 8 contest against the West Indies in Kolkata. Chasing a 196-run total at the Eden Gardens, India were pressed onto the back foot and in danger of missing the semi-finals when Samson finally decided to end a decade’s backlog by playing the innings of his lifetime. He would later term it “one of the greatest days of my life”, admitting to phases of self-doubt that inconsistencies and poor form had played on him. Samson’s prolonged rut had forced him out of the first-choice combination in the lead-up to the World Cup. But with India’s left-hand heavy top-order not firing, Samson was slotted in back to the top with Tilak Varma demoted to number five and Ishan Kishan to number three. Samson produced a fiery start against Zimbabwe but could not capitalise. But when the chips were dream, the Kerala batter finally played the knock of his life, powering his and India’s …

Gavaskar hails Samson’s knock vs West Indies

Gavaskar hails Samson’s knock vs West Indies

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4 min readMar 2, 2026 05:45 PM IST While Sanju Samson is among the top 40 run-scorers in the world in T20 cricket with a total of 8,222 runs, the 31-year-old’s record in T20Is shows only 1,221 runs from his 60-match career. Having scored three centuries in T20Is for India, Samson registered his seventh fifty-plus score in the format with a 50-ball knock of 97 runs, guiding India to a five-wicket victory over West Indies in their last Super 8 match at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday. With India securing a semi-final spot following the win, all eyes have been on Samson, and former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar believes the innings has not only lifted the weight off Samson’s shoulders but also off everyone who recognises the quality player he has been. “This knock of 97 not only takes the weight off Sanju Samson’s shoulders, but off everyone who knows what a fine player he has been. He has had ups and downs, and we have felt them too because he is such a …

‘You had everything; you had timing, you had placement…’: Ravi Shastri showers praise on Sanju Samson | Cricket News

‘You had everything; you had timing, you had placement…’: Ravi Shastri showers praise on Sanju Samson | Cricket News

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5 min readMar 2, 2026 02:29 PM IST With his knock of 50-ball knock of 97 runs against West Indies in what was a virtual quarter-final at Eden Gardens on Sunday night, Sanju Samson ensured that India made its highest successful run chase in T20 World Cup history. Samson’s knock, which was studded with 12 boundaries and four sixes, also was the highest score by any Indian batter in a run chase in the tournament’s history, surpassing Virat Kohli’s record knocks of 82 against Australia at Mohali in 2016 and against Pakistan in 2022. Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri has showered praise on Samson’s impactful knock and shared how Sunday’s knock had everything in terms of timing, placement, power as well class. “It is Sanju’s special Samson today, and that innings was special, because just his calmness, his composure, and just the sublime touch right through that innings. You had everything. You had timing, you had placement, you had explosive power, you had class and what I liked best was even with wickets falling …

‘Form isn’t the issue with Sanju Samson’: Former India player compares situation to Suryakumar Yadav | Cricket News

‘Form isn’t the issue with Sanju Samson’: Former India player compares situation to Suryakumar Yadav | Cricket News

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3 min readFeb 2, 2026 06:01 PM IST Former Indian batter Robin Uthappa believes that until Tilak Varma is fully fit, Sanju Samson should continue to be given opportunities to be India’s opener. Samson, who has been plagued by a set of poor scores, especially with five misfires against New Zealand in the recently-concluded T20I series, could possibly find himself out of the playing XI, especially with the hot run that Ishan Kishan is on. But Uthappa believes that just like it was in the case of captain Suryakumar Yadav, Samson too deserves time. The former player also said that form isn’t the issue with the wicket-keeping opener. “Form will always be temporary, be it Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, or Rohit Sharma. When you are a cricketer of that calibre, I don’t think the form of Sanju Samson is an issue. Even Suryakumar Yadav wasn’t out of form. It’s just that he didn’t play in one position long enough. The kind of player Samson is, when he comes off in tandem with Abhishek Sharma, they …

IND vs NZ | Rope’s end: Sanju Samson faces final audition – India’s leap of faith ahead of World Cup | Cricket News

IND vs NZ | Rope’s end: Sanju Samson faces final audition – India’s leap of faith ahead of World Cup | Cricket News

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The sun beat down on the ACA-VDCA stadium at Vizag as Sanju Samson strode out for what could be described as the most scrutinized net session of his career. With head coach Gautam Gambhir positioned behind the stumps at the bowler’s end, eyes locked on every movement, every shot, every twitch of hesitation, the wicketkeeper-batsman knew the weight of expectation resting on his shoulders. For the next 20-odd minutes on the eve of the fourth T20I against New Zealand, Samson faced the full arsenal – Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, and three throw-down specialists. The coaching staff watched intently as he went aerial, creamed drives through covers, and produced one particularly eye-catching scoop over point off a fuller delivery from Arshdeep. Bar one no-look swipe that took the top edge, he looked every bit the elegant stroke-maker who has bewitched Indian cricket with glimpses of brilliance. Yet one telling detail betrayed the purpose of this session. Time and again, as short balls were directed at his body, Samson appeared unconvincing with the pull shot, …