Sanju Samson: A star reborn

Imagine a designer shirt. You love it but you seldom wear it. You most certainly don't wear it to work even though showbiz is your thing. You bypass occasions tailormade for that piece of apparel, for reasons unknown. So it wears itself out in the wardrobe. But the fact is, the shirt was never bad, you were in doubt. Now, imagine Sanju Samson.

Fewer cricketers have been mistimed as much as Sanju has in India colours. His talent and temperament have never been in doubt ever since he made a name for himself as a fearless, swashbuckling top-order batter in the Indian Premier League (IPL). But when it comes to getting selected to the national side, Sanju has got the designer shirt treatment.

“Class is permanent...Form temporary!,” posted cricket coach and trainer Biju George on Facebook soon after Sanju scored his maiden international century in the series-clinching ODI at Paarl against hosts South Africa. A calculated, matured knock of 108 off 114 deliveries. He's played 40 internationals (T20Is and ODIs) to finally find his moment.

But like coach George, who discovered the talent in the Kerala cricketer, said, Sanju's class was perspicuous. But it had been mismanaged or rushed for long. Here's a look at how his journey in India colours took shape since making his debut in 2015.

Sanju became an India player in July 2015 when he made his T20I debut against Zimbabwe in Harare. It wasn't a memorable outing because India lost and he couldn't do anything fancy. Then a 20-year-old, Sanju walked in at 71/5 with the target of 146 appearing ever so distant. He managed to stick around for a while and scored 19 but in vain.

In the next five years, India played over 70 T20Is but Sanju wasn't part of one. In the meantime, his stature in the IPL, the tournament that launched him, grew from strength to strength. Sanju scored nearly 1,500 runs over the next four IPL seasons, hitting two centuries and six half-centuries, but he was not considered for Team India again until 2020. He had a noteworthy domestic campaign, impressing in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and scoring a double century in a List A game, to make him eligible for selection.

Sanju was included in India's third T20I against Sri Lanka in early January 2020, and he came in at 3 after the fall of opener Shikhar Dhawan. It was quite an entry. First ball... six. Sanju smashed Lakshan Sandakan over long-off. But the joy didn't last long as he played a wrong line to leggie Wanindu Hasaranga the next over and was dismissed LBW for 6.

No runs to show for, but perhaps the attitude caught the attention of the selectors as Sanju was picked for India's tour of New Zealand the same month. This time he opened with K L Rahul and took two singles in the first over. First ball of the second over : Six, whipping Scott Kuggeleijn over long-on. But just like against Lanka, it's a shortlived joy as he perished two balls later.
His next opportunity came in the final game of the series. And it's Deja vu. Opening with Rahul, Sanju took two singles off the first over and faced Kuggeleijn at the start of the second over. Blame the boy's instinct, he fell again playing a wild shot, this time on the third ball. Two runs.

The three innings separated by a five-year period was  sufficient to brand him erratic and unreliable, and it sticks onto his bat, like a sponsor's sticker. Sanju was constantly reminded, on social media, of his 'unreliability', whenever he failed. It was evident as recently as in August 2023 when he was trolled for a poor showing on a tour of the West Indies.

Let's see if he can play ODIs
Sanju's maiden ODI call-up came for India's tour of Sri Lanka in July 2021. But he sprained a ligament on his knee before the first match and had to wait for his debut until the final game of the series. He walked in on the dismissal of Dhawan and scored a respectable 46, but India lost by three wickets.

But staking a claim for yourself in the ODIs requires a lot more than a run-a-ball innings and so he waited a full year until a tour of West Indies came around, for another stint. He did alright, scored a fifty but that was not enough.

So close, yet so far
In October 2022, South Africa toured India. The series opener in Lucknow went against the plan of the home side. South Africa posted 249/4 but India soon found themselves reeling at 51/4. Fans expected a miracle, but it was Sanju who came out to bat. Clearly, expectations were not sky-high but he soon altered the mood.
Partnering with Shreyas Iyer, Sanju got India back in the game. Iyer fell for 50, but Sanju carried on. India needed 74 off the last five overs. Sanju, now well settled at the crease, went after Temba Bavuma's bowlers. Waye Parnell, Lungi Ngidi, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi... everyone got the treatment as he brought the asking rate down to 30 off the last over. He tried his best, but India lost by 9 runs. It was his moment, only it wasn't.

A month later, Sanju got picked for India's tour of New Zealand and rightly so. But the timing did not work in his favour; not off the bat though. Sanju was selected for the first ODI. Coming in at six, after the top order of Dhawan, Shubhman Gill and Iyer had made merry with half-centuries, Sanju was entrusted with getting the score past 300, which he achieved partnering with Washington Sundar. Despite his 36 off 38, he was not considered for the second match. Skipper Dhawan explained that Sanju had made way for offie Deepak Hooda as the team management thought it better to go with a sixth bowler. But the match is washed out.

For the series decided in Christchurch, India go in unchanged. But weather has the last say. Another washout and Sanju was a forgotten man. He was overlooked for India's tour of Bangladesh with Rajat Patidar getting a look in, which surprised, among many, cricketer-turned-commentator Simon Doull, who said Sanju was 'good enough' for the tour.

Injuries and more snubs
Turn of the calendar did not change Sanju's luck; a knee injury ruled him out. Meanwhile, India were busy hosting Sri Lanka and New Zealand before the Australia came calling.

In July, Sanju has recovered so he gets picked for India's three-match ODI series against the West Indies. Sanju was not part of the first match that India won by 5 wickets. But he was selected for the second one in Bridgetown. But it did not go well -- he makes 9 off 19. Skipper Hardik Pandya too struggled with 7 off 14 as India lost by 6 wickets. But both Sanju and Pandya redeemed themselves with half-centuries, 51 (41) and 70 not out (52) respectively, in the third ODI that India won by a whopping 200 runs.
In the successful Asia Cup campaign in Sri Lanka, Sanju was only a backup player, while in the ODI World Cup at home, he was ignored.

This century in Paarl is redemption long overdue for a thorough professional, who hasn't so much offered a dismissive shrug at the innumerable omissions. "There is so much quality in our Indian team so it is not easy to get a spot in it," he said after the World Cup snub. Well played, Sanju.