The 27-year-old Indian wicket-keeper batsman Sanju Samson credits IPL captaincy for changing his perspective towards cricket to evolve as a better cricketer. He has only played 27 international matches across all formats despite debuting 7 years ago. With his sheer talent, he has scored a match-winning 43 (39) and been the player-of-the-match in a 162-run chase in the 2nd ODI against Zimbabwe on Saturday.
While speaking of the commencement of the 3rd ODI against Zimbabwe, Sanju Samson admitted that the captaincy responsibility in the IPL helped him to bring out a different mindset in him.
Sanju Samson has been the skipper of the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) since 2021. Even though Samson failed to create a big impact in the IPL 2021 as a captain, he led the team to the finals in IPL 2022. Also, Rajasthan Royals won 9 games out of 14 in the IPL 2022. Being a captain, he has improved a lot in the game.
He said, “It has changed my perspective towards cricket. Earlier I used to think only about my batting, my game. Captaincy helps bring a different mindset – think about others as well apart from your game.”
He was also very much happy and surprised about the support he got from his fans. “I feel surprised that despite playing very little for India, I get good support. I feel very surprised when I get loud cheers from the fans everywhere we travel. I can see a lot of people calling me ‘Chetta’. I am really proud to be a Malayali and represent my country as a Malayali cricketer”, he added.
While talking about the 2nd ODI, he said he was under pressure dealing with the game. Also, he enjoyed his time in the middle. He has a dream to spend more time in the middle. “I was really pumped up to be there in pressure situation and they were also bowling well. I really enjoyed the time in the middle. I am a believer that whatever you go through in your career, you have to take it in a positive manner”.
Sanju Samson also opened up about his lack of opportunities at the international level. It was only when the star players rested, that he got chances at the international level. “It was tough watching all your friends play for the country, but I really enjoyed playing those domestic games in that period, it is challenging to do well there and that has made me be a better player.”
Sanju Samson has got a large fan base across social media platforms. The supporters highly criticized BCCI and the selection committee while he was neglected in several matches. Still, Samson is happy and proud to play for his country and continue his run-chase in the matches he has got chance with.
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