When at his explosive best, Sanju Samson has the firepower to defeat the opposition in the Powerplay itself, according to India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir.
Samson put up pivotal performances near the conclusion of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, scoring spectacular half-centuries in the semi-final and final to help India win a record third title, as well as in the important Super 8 match against the West Indies.
Samson, together with Abhishek Sharma, scored 92 runs during the powerplay in the final, taking the match away from New Zealand.
“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,” PTI quoted Gambhir as saying on Jio Star.
Following a subpar build-up series against New Zealand, Samson was left out of the World Cup starting lineup. However, Samson made a brilliant start with a 15-ball 24 when given a chance in the crucial match against Zimbabwe.
Samson scored 97 not out, 89, and 89 in India’s last three games.
“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,” he said.
Ishan Kishan, Abhishek Sharma, and Tilak Varma were the three left-handers that made up India’s top order without Samson.
However, Gambhir said that Samson’s inclusion in the starting lineup was intended to provide firepower rather than disrupt the left-handed combination.
“I know a lot of people will talk about how we wanted to break the three left-handers at the top, not at all. We just felt that we wanted to be more explosive because the ideology in the last one and a half years has been to go out there and be as explosive as we can be,” he said.
“The reason to bring in Sanju was not about managing the off-spinner from the other end. It was about whether we could get even more firepower at the top and be more aggressive in the first six overs,” Gambhir added.
