Sanju Samson (Image credit: Instagram) NEW DELHI: Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson expressed heartfelt gratitude after playing a key role in India’s successful ICC Men’s T20 World Cup campaign, saying the moment felt like the realization of a long-cherished dream he once believed had vanished.Samson staged a remarkable comeback during the recently concluded tournament as he fought through inconsistency and spells on the bench to become India’s top run-scorer. He produced crucial performances when it mattered most, creating a series of half-centuries from the virtual quarter-final against the West Indies cricket team to the title clash against the New Zealand national cricket team.
Gautam Gambhir reflects on India’s World Cup win and Sanju Samson’s support in the tournament
The wicketkeeper-batsman was also named player of the tournament for his consistency, amassing 321 runs in five innings at an average of 80.25 and a strike rate of 199.37. His total included 27 fours and 24 sixes and he finished as the third highest run-scorer in the tournament.In 2014, he also surpassed Virat Kohli’s tally of 319 runs to score the most runs by an Indian in a single T20 World Cup.In a video shared by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Samson admitted that he had always dreamed of achieving such a milestone for the country but never imagined it would turn out the way it eventually did.
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“Unbelievable, I think I’ve said before, I had a dream to achieve this, but I didn’t know it was going to happen at this exact moment. I’m so very grateful. I absolutely have no words for it to be very honest. I know, I think true prayers and true wishes are very powerful, and when they’re given by such a huge crowd, I don’t think I can really ask for a wish and a prayer to be honest.”Defending their T20 World Cup crown by defeating New Zealand by 96 runs, India became the first team to win the marquee competition three times since its inception in 2007 and the first team to successfully defend the title in consecutive editions.Considering the support he received from fans across the country, Samson said the prayers from fans meant more to him than any personal success.“I think it’s much, much bigger to me than anything in this life. I want to thank each and every one of you out there who wished me, who prayed for me. Thank you so much and it means the world to me. You can definitely have a dream, you can definitely think that’s what you want to achieve, but you can’t plan the path to get there. That’s something that only one person could do that I lost.”Ahead of the T20 World Cup, the wicket-keeper batsman endured a tough home T20I series against the Black Caps, managing just 46 runs in five matches. Samson revealed he believed his dream had vanished after the series against New Zealand.“I think I let it go after the New Zealand series. I thought my dream was broken. I actually wanted to do it, I wanted to be the man for India in this World Cup, but after the New Zealand series I thought I missed my opportunity and the dream is broken. But I think the world and God’s grace have turned things around and I’m very happy that it happened here,” Samson concluded.
