member of congress Shashi Tharoor has long been an admirer Sanzhou SamsonRecently, he won the Player of the Tournament award as India won its third T20 World Cup. Tharoor recalls the wicketkeeper-batsman’s rise, telling young Samson he could be the next MS Dhoni.“I was immensely proud. I first met him when he was 14 and he was a young club cricketer with a huge smile and a lot of talent and was brilliant at both wicketkeeping and batting. I told him, somewhat condescendingly, that he would be next Dhoni,” Tharoor said.
However, former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir Tharoor later told Saloor that Samson would not need to follow others but would forge his own path. Gambhir has been supporting Samson even before he became India’s head coach. In 2020, he called him “not just India’s best wicketkeeper-batsman but India’s best young batsman”.“Years later, Gambhir corrected me and said he didn’t need to be the next Dhoni; he was going to be the one and only Sanju Samson – and that’s exactly what he became,” Tharoor added.Dhoni remains the benchmark as a wicketkeeper-batsman, having burst onto the international scene as a top-order batsman, winning all three major ICC white-ball trophies before becoming one of India’s finest middle-order finishers and captains.Samson, meanwhile, has been in poor form ahead of the T20 World Cup and was even benched before returning for the crucial Super 8 match against Zimbabwe. He then followed it up with three half-centuries in a row: 97* against the West Indies in the final, 89 against England, and 89 against New Zealand, consistently stabilizing India’s innings and leading them to defend the title.“He was a huge success – quiet, humble, unpretentious and an effective leader,” Tharoor said. “He led rajasthan royals It has performed well over the years and brought stability to the Indian top order. Even in his difficult stages, I always felt that if he calmed down, his core talent would shine through. “Recalling Samson’s performance in the semi-finals and final, Tharoor added: “In both games, he shot 89 and was dismissed while selflessly playing key shots for the team. He could have played conservatively, but he chose to accelerate, showing the selfless, talented and dedicated nature of Samson.”
Sanju Samson breaks record 2026 T20 World Cup Activity
Sanju Samson’s brilliant performance in the 2026 T20 World Cup changed the record books. In just five games, he scored 321 points, breaking Virat KohliIn the 2014 T20 World Cup, an Indian held the long-standing record of 319 runs, becoming the most runs scored by an Indian in a T20 World Cup and setting a new benchmark of most six runs in a single World Cup with 24 runs.Samson also broke several other records, including the most runs scored by an Indian team in consecutive innings, the most runs scored by an Indian team in a T20 World Cup knockout match, and the highest runs scored by an Indian team in a T20 World Cup final and run-chase match. His power hitting, composure under pressure and winning instincts make him a standout performer in the tournament. With these feats, Samson not only helped India win their third T20 World Cup title, but also elevated himself into the elite echelon of T20 cricket legends.
