The latter phase of the ongoing 2026 T20 World Cup is turning out to be a story of redemption for Sanju Samson. The Indian opener didn’t start India’s campaign, and was included in the playing XI during the Super 8 stage. He justified the decision by registering scores of 97* not out against the West Indies and then a match-winning 89 vs England in the semifinal. Commenting on Samson’s return to the playing XI, India captain Suryakumar Yadav hailed the batter and pointed out that ‘he is reaping the benefits of his hard work’.
He was in poor form in the bilateral series against New Zealand before the tournament, which led to him getting dropped. He didn’t start in the group stage, except for the game against Namibia after Abhishek Sharma suffered a stomach infection.
Suryakumar Yadav explains Sanju Samson’s return
Speaking during the pre-match press conference ahead of the final against New Zealand, Suryakumar said, “I feel the tough calls, the head coach and I, do it together.”
“We see how the team will benefit and which player we should add, depending on factors like match-ups. Regarding Sanju’s inclusion, we saw that in the bilateral series, the combination of Sanju, Ishan and Abhishek batting in the top worked, and so we roped him in. Sanju worked very hard, and even wh he wasn’t playing, he did everything for the team. He is reaping the benefits of his hard work.”
In the semifinal, Samson was dropped on 15 by England captain Harry Brook, and he ended up hammering 89 off 42 balls, including seven sixes.
Samson’s resurgence has also led to his inclusion in the nominations list for the Player of the Tournament award. He is the only Indian on the shortlist, alongside England’s Will Jacks, Pakistan’s Sahibzada Farhan, South Africa’s Lungi Ngidi and Aiden Markram, New Zealand’s Rachin Ravindra and Tim Seifert, and USA’s Shadley van Schalkwyk.
