"I've learned to cope with pressure and failures": Sanju Samson

Sanju Samson (Pic: File Pic)

Sanju Samson stated that he has learned to live with the unavoidable pressure and failures at the international level. He thanked the leadership group for guiding him in his dark patches of self-doubt and giving me another chance to prove himself.

In the third T20I match against Bangladesh, Sanju Samson smashed his maiden ton in the shortest format of the match.

Two successive ducks against Sri Lanka in July and two more tepid outings against Bangladesh over the past week here had left him creaking.

"After a couple of ducks in Sri Lanka, I was a bit doubtful about getting a chance in the next series. But they (coaching staff and captain) backed me and kept on saying that we will back you no matter what", said Sanju Samson in the post-match press meet.

Sanju Samson has accepted the fact that he cannot run away from the pressure of being an Indian cricket. "I think mentally you go through a lot as an Indian cricketer, especially in this format (T20). But I have learned to cope with the pressure and the failures. I think a lot of credit has to go to the dressing room, the leadership group, and the captain and the coach have been backing me", he added.

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Sanju Samson said that head coach Gautam Gambhir conveyed him in advance that he would be playing the opener's role in the Bangladesh series.

"I think three weeks before this series, I was very fortunate to get a message from the leadership group, Gautam Bhai, Suryakumar (Yadav) and Abhishek Nair (assistant coach) -- that I will be opening. I think that gave me proper preparation. I went back to Rajasthan Royals Academy and I was playing lots against new ball bowlers, and I think that preparation helped me a tiny bit. I think I was just coming in 10% more ready in this series than any other series", he detailed.

Samson said the role clarity has also helped him to develop more awareness about his own game.

"Basically, I have understood my game that I can bat anywhere from 1 to 6. I think I have power and I also have timing in my game. So, it is all about working according to which role I am playing in."

This self-discovery has helped Sanju Samson to become more confident as a person and as a cricketer. "When you have those failures, I think, it is very easy to go back and say I will make my run in the next game. But I know what (type of) person I am. It is all about my friends, my team."

"So, I like to go out and fail or succeed in my own way. I just want to be myself. It is all about knowing your game, knowing your personal character. So, it is all about being true to yourself."

The Kerala man said he was trying to stay in the middle for as long as possible during the third T20I against Bangladesh here.

"I have been batting well from the last two games. I was timing the ball much better, even though I didn't get enough scores. I think if I came out of power play, I wanted to make sure that I reach a good score. I think scoring four consecutive boundaries (off Taskin Ahmed in the second over) definitely gave me lots of confidence", he explained.

Samson said the presence of skipper Suryakumar at the other end was helpful for him. "I was having a good partnership with Surya and there was great communication happening between both of us. He was also taking a lot of pressure from me and we both were scoring. I think there was a great combination happening in the middle."

The Rajasthan Royals skipper said the Indian T20I side is looking to dominate every game.

"We have committed as a batting group to go out and dominate each and every game we play in this format. So, as a team we are doing it and I am very grateful that I did something good for the team. But we were not thinking about 300 (total)", he added.

The highlight of Sanju Samson's innings was the five successive sixes he hammered off leg-spinner Rishad Hossain. Samson said hitting six sixes in an over has been on his mind for a while now.

"I know what I can do to a spinner. So, I just wanted to hit maximum runs in that over. I have been thinking that I can hit six 6s in an over. I am not joking. I have been working accordingly with my coaches."

"I have been practicing and visualising for that. I am very grateful that it finally happened", he signed off.

(With PTI Inputs)