It was after bagging a hundred in the third T20I match against Bangladesh, Sanju Samson has shown a strong inclination towards Test cricket hoping to become an all round player. The wicketkeeper-batter from Kerala made his first appearance in the T20I league in 2015 and ODI scored debut in the year 2021. He has been regarded as a make shift player in these national outfits on most occasions owing to poor consistency.
However I also feel that it limits me as red ball crickets is more than just white ball cricket and I believe there are certain things that drive me towards it. I want to play Tests for India. Prior to Duleep Trophy, the leadership group mentioned to me that they are looking at me for red ball and this time to take it seriously and engage in Ranji a lot more Samson said in a media interaction here on Tuesday.
Notwithstanding the fact that he recently notched up a century, Samson believes he is capable of red-ball cricket, and as a result, the Indian team management has requested him to concentrate on first-class cricket and as such, a potential place into the Test squad is in the works.
“This time around, my preparation was good. After the Sri lanka series, I stayed back and worked on my game with rahul dravid at the rr academy and zubin bharucha. The Duleep trophy century has a huge impact on me because this century was scored against some of the top bowlers in the nation,”
pausing for a moment, samson added.
Samson, who has played 64 first-class matches and scored 3,819 runs at an average of 38.96, will be back on the field playing for Kerala in their Ranji Trophy match against Karnataka on the 18th of October. Samson looking back thanked his advancement contributed by his effective preparation and training at the RR Academy under Rahul Dravid and Zubin Bharucha, for his recent strides.
”Suryakumar is an effective and clear communicator with the team. Players are assured of what he insists on performance-wise. He knows what he is doing and the players have faith in him. Gautam bhai has been there for me, every step of the way.’’ It’s nice to have a coach willing to back your talent; it also makes playing cricket enjoyable,’’ said Samson.
When my association with the team was clear and strong, I was particularly uncomfortable, having been told three weeks in advance, that I would open in the T20I series against Bangladesh. Going on to boast about his reckless batting that even saw him hit five sixes in one over, Samson said that playing such aggressive cricket is his style and he is happy about it.
” When you normally play for India you are not certain about which position you will play. But this time, I was given instructions about three weeks early because I would be playing as an opener against Bangladesh. I was mentally on the new position,” said Samson.
