India batter-wicketkeeper Sanju Samson opened up about finding much-needed stability in his national T20I career, attributing his upturn in form in the Bangladesh and South Africa series last year to head coach Gautam Gambhir and skipper Suryakumar Yadav. The Kerala batter was a man on a mission in 2024 when he smashed his first maiden T20I century against Bangladesh and then followed it up with two tons against South Africa.
The batter, however, did not have the best of times before these two series with the Kerala player registering back to back ducks against Sri Lanka in July 2024. It was then that Gambhir had assured him his place in the line up that boosted his confidence.
“The change happened after the T20 World Cup (2024). Gautam bhai came in, and Surya came in as the captain. I was playing a Duleep Trophy game in Andhra. Surya was playing for the other team. He told me, ‘There is a good opportunity coming up for you. We have seven (T20I) games (vs Bangladesh and South Africa) lined up, and I am going to give you all seven games as an opener,” said Samson on R Ashwin’s “Kutti Stories” on YouTube.
“The words coming out from the captain’s mouth itself actually felt, Oh wow, great. I played two games in Sri Lanka but was unable to score runs. I was a bit down in the dressing room, and Gautam bhai came up to me and asked what had happened. “I said, ‘After a long time, I got a chance, but I failed to capitalise’. He said, ‘So what? I’ll drop you if you register 21 ducks’. That’s the word which he used. That kind of confidence from the captain and the coach has definitely raised my confidence. That really helped me to go out there and perform,” he added.
