Watch: Sanju Samson’s ‘better than others’ comment goes viral ahead of IPL 2026

The wicket-keeper batter of the Indian side, Sanju Samson, reckoned that being dropped from the playing XI after the bilateral series at home against New Zealand left him broken, and that it was not comfortable competing with his teammates for a spot in the team, as he had scores of 46 runs in the five-match New Zealand series. 

Sanju Samson finished the T20 World Cup 2026 as their third leading run-getter of the competition with the help of 321 runs in five innings at an average of 80.25 and a strike rate of 199.37, thanks to three half-centuries at the best score of unbeaten 97 runs in Kolkata against West Indies.

“I was totally fired up, like too desperate with the dream coming in. I thought they trusted me, but are they ready to try me out? I am the type of person who does much better for others than doing things better for myself. I was too desperate knowing that my dream was so near. But was the team still trying some combinations? So, is Sanju there or not there?” Samson expressed in the India Today program.

Sanju Samson shows belief in his skills

Samson has overall collected 1399 runs in 54 innings of the T20I format at an average of 28.55 and a strike rate of 156.83, scoring six half-centuries and three centuries at the best score of 111 runs. He reflected on his hard work for the T20 WC 2026.

Watch the video here: 

That kind of feeling played in my mind at that time. I was absolutely broken because my dream was to win the World Cup, and I was not even in the XI. I had gone away for five-six days, and I started rebuilding myself, started preparing myself, knowing you never know what the game wants to give back to you.” Samson addressed.

See Also: Watch: KKR trolls RCB in recent jersey-launch video before IPL 2026

“I knew the team management had trust in me. When the World Cup came in, I figured out what the team wants from you, so that is the mindset change that happened in my head. Right from the Zimbabwe game, we had to win four out of four matches, and the team needs you. So that's when it became very positive for me, and I was very fired up.” The wicket-keeper batter shed light.

Sanju Samson prepares for IPL 2026

Samson has overall smashed 4704 runs in 172 innings of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at an average of 30.94 and a strike rate of 139.04 with the help of 26 half-centuries and three centuries at the best score of 119.

In the previous season for the Rajasthan Royals, through an injured period, he smashed 285 runs in nine innings at an average of 35.62 and a strike rate of 140.39 with the help of one half-century at the best score of 66 runs. 

But he will leave his long-time franchise and head to the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for the IPL 2026 under the leadership of Ruturaj Gaikwad, where he will open the batting.