“I’ve kept on doubting myself” - Sanju Samson opens up after his match-winning knock vs WI

Indian opening batter Sanju Samson, who helped the Indian team advance to the semi-finals of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 with his unbeaten 97-run knock at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, has revealed that he kept on doubting himself while being on the bench.

Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony after his match-winning knock, Samson clarified that he kept on believing in himself and termed the day he had been waiting for. He went on to add that his journey has always been with lots of ups and downs.

“It means the whole world actually, to me. I think right from the day I started playing, started dreaming to play for the country, I think this is the day I was waiting for. And very grateful, very thankful. And I’ve always had a very special journey with lots of ups and downs, but I’ve kept on doubting myself, kept on thinking, what if, can I make it? But I kept on believing and thanks to the Lord Almighty for actually blessing me today. So I’m very happy,” Samson said at the post-match presentation ceremony. 

Additionally, Samson also credited Indian greats like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma for helping him learn how to play the innings according to the situation. For the unversed, Samson’s unbeaten 97-run knock had no major aerially routed forced shots.

“I think playing IPL around 10 to 12 years and playing for the country from last 10 years, I have not been playing, but looking from the dugout, learning from the greats like Virat Kohli, from Rohit Sharma, like all the greats. I think it’s very important to observe and learn and see what they were doing. I think that really helped me to, I think with my experience, I have only played maybe 50, 60 games, but I’ve seen around 100 games and I’ve seen how the greatest people have finished the games and how do they change their game according to the game,” he added.

“So I think last game we were batting first, so it was all about setting a very high score. So that’s how I wanted to go big right from ball one. But this game was completely different. I think as soon as I wanted to go a bit higher, we were losing wickets. So I think I wanted to build a partnership, wanted to keep on focusing on my process. And I never felt that I will do something special like this, but I was just focusing on my role and just keeping one ball at a time and very grateful. I think this is one of the greatest days of my life,” he concluded.

Stay updated with the latest cricket news, match insights, and exclusive updates at BetBarter and download the BetBarter app to start betting today!