Sanju Samson just needs to be like Sanju Samson and that’s it
Sanju Samson returns to international cricket with a prospect of playing all three IND v SL T20I matches and he has a familiar foe waiting in the wings. Can he overcome the big hurdle?
February 19th, 2022 was a special day for Sanju Samson and his fans. The day which saw the 27-year old ending his eight-month hiatus from the national squad grew all more special after Chetan Sharma, the chief selectors conveyed that Samson is in their scheme of things for the upcoming T20 World Cup in Australia.
The recall wasn’t a surprise, though, as first-choice keeper Rishabh Pant and No.3 batter Virat Kohli were released from the team’s bubble a day before, indicating their potential unavailability from the T20I series against Sri Lanka, and that paved way for Samson to reunite with International Cricket.
The recall was a much-needed one for someone as gifted as Sanju Samson. Having played 10 T20Is in his seven-year-long career, he has failed to score big in each of them. There were a few promising glimpses but big things just weren’t to be. Few matches here and there and he was dropped after some uninspiring performances in Sri Lanka, losing on a chance to play in the T20 World Cup.
Close to 8 months after playing his most recent for India, once again Samson finds himself in the mix, given another opportunity to prove himself in the international arena. Given the backing of team management and the chief selector himself, he would fancy playing all three games in the series, which may well be the most crucial troika of games he would ever be a part of.
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That is likely to happen all the more with Suryakumar Yadav ruled out of the T20Is against Sri Lanka with a hairline fracture. India are left with just six batters in their squad, including Samson, with replacement options closed due to bio-bubble protocols.
Now let’s do a quick rewind to what makes Samson really special.
RR vs SRH, Dubai, 2021: The second of the two mandatory time-outs is in its last few seconds. After making a bold move of batting first, RR captain Sanju Samson is palpably struggling to time the ball well and is ambling along at 38*(36). To make things even tougher for Samson, Kane Williamson hands over the ball to Rashid Khan. Having conceded only 36 runs in 49 deliveries other than dismissing him once till that point, Rashid probably knew how to keep it tight for an otherwise free-flowing Sanju Samson.
Nevertheless, the latter had other plans. Rashid goes on with his swift run-up and bowls an away turning good-length delivery. And before anything could be made of that delivery, it’s seen swimming in the air over the long-off region. Yes, it’s a six. A six off Rashid’s bowling after a potentially rhythm-disrupting time-out. Not to forget that it came off a nicely timed step out by Samson.
The major hurdle for Sanju Samson in the IND v SL T20Is
Now what was the thought behind bringing this forgotten subplot into this piece?
Sanju Samson faces a slight difficulty while batting against the leg-spinners. In all T20s, Samson has been dismissed 22 times by leg-spinners, while striking at a rate of 117.4 against them and averaging a shade above 21. The strike-rate has shot up to 131 since 2020, but the average hasn’t improved by much.
And in the upcoming T20I series against Sri Lanka, he will be up against a bowler, who has been successful in getting the better of him for three times in his career. The bowler is Wanindu Hasaranga. Hasaranga was the one responsible for shortening the return of Sanju Samson to international Cricket in 2020 to a mere two balls. Hasaranga also accounted for him two times more in last year’s series. The mode of dismissal in all three instances was constant – LBW. It indicates a flaw in his technique to some extent. It’s Hasaranga who stands as a major threat for Samson this time around.
Now, after an eight-month absence from international cricket and with a lot at stake, Samson once again finds the opponent to be Sri Lanka, a team he has played most against. But a Sanju Samson fan worth his salt would agree that the lad never compromises on scoring rate, no matter how adverse the situation gets. And, this is what can help him dominate against Hasaranga and other spinners – to look for boundaries and be what he is, instead of going into a shell.
Of course, a bit of technical improvement would also be needed. The way he tackled Rashid is a suitable example of what a positive mindset combined with technical upgradation can do. While watching the ball till the last second and stepping out at the right time is concerned with the technical part, dispatching the first ball of the over for a six sums up the mindset part. Though doing such audacious stuff doesn’t make a batsman invincible against a particular bowler, it definitely helps in breaking the bowler’s rhythm and forcing a rethink.
All in all, Sanju Samson can do away with his struggles by batting like Sanju Samson. The one who believes in his shots, the one who believes in himself.
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