Sanju Samson talked about how his early cricket career was shaped into the player he is now by the sacrifices made by his parents. The wicketkeeper-batter is regarded as one of India’s top batters in Twenty20 Internationals following his heroics at the 2026 T20 World Cup, where he was crowned Player of the Tournament.
Sanju Samson came to the realisation that his parents’ sacrifices shouldn’t have been in vain. Because of this, the right-handed hitter developed a sense of responsibility at a young age and always wanted to make sure that his parents’ efforts were successful. As a result, he was never satisfied when he started using his trait in cricket and got a poor score.
“At that age, we felt like we were doing something worthwhile, and we loved our routine—morning practice, going to school, rushing back and training again. We were valued for it by our school and academy classmates. They respected us even more after witnessing how hard we worked.
There was a constant, silent strain in the back of my mind even as a child. Sanju Samson stated on JioStar, “You realise you can’t take a single day off when you see your father shift his entire world for you and your mother sacrifice her sleep every day. That’s why going out for 30 or 40 and then going home and telling my dad that I got out for 30 felt a bit heavy.”
But in retrospect, I feel like I was at my best in that setting. I went onto the pitch with the intention of making my parents proud and honouring their sacrifices, while my friends played for enjoyment. That’s what helped me stay focused when I was so young,” he continued.
Sanju Samson remembers his battles with the Kolkata Knight Riders.
Sanju Samson also recalled that his underage coach, Biju George, had brought him to the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) auditions. The wicketkeeper says he was amazed to see Sourav Ganguly and John Buchanan in person before to turning fifteen.
“After I went on to perform well for Kerala in the Under-13 tournament, Biju sir took me all the way to the Kolkata Knight Riders selection trials when I was just 14 years old,” he adds, acknowledging the part Biju George played in his early years and giving him opportunities he would not have otherwise had.
For a fourteen-year-old, that felt incredibly bizarre. John Buchanan was the head coach at the time, and Sourav Ganguly sir was the KKR captain.
They chose me to be a member of the KKR “B” team during that time after I performed my trials in front of them. We even had the opportunity to visit Sri Lanka for games against the “B” team.
“I will always, unconditionally, give Biju sir the credit for shaping the early stages of my career because he consistently opened doors and created opportunities for us,” he continued.
Remember that in 2012, when they won their first championship, Samson joined KKR, their first Indian Premier League team. But the Keralan batsman didn’t play a single game till a year later, when he joined the Rajasthan Royals.
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