“You can have your favourite food from Kerala” - When Sanju Samson revealed Virat Kohli’s advice during IPL 2020

Team India keeper-batter Sanju Samson had once revealed the valuable piece of advice he received from the Indian talismanic batter Virat Kohli when the duo was plying their trade in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 season.

In his exclusive conversation with ESPNcricinfo, Samson had disclosed Kohli’s advice to give the best in the 10-year cricketing career Samson has and then enjoy whatever he wants after his career comes to an end. This lift-changing advice has changed Samson’s perspective towards the game of cricket.

"I was in the gym training with Virat bhai. I keep asking him why he puts so much energy into fitness. I keep asking him a lot of different questions. Then he asked me, 'Sanju, how many years are you going to be playing?' And I said, 'I'm 25 now so for ten years or so.' He told me, 'Then give everything to these ten years and you can have your favourite food from Kerala after that, but you won't be able to play cricket after these ten years so why don't you give whatever you have in these ten years?'" Sanju Samson had told ESPNcricinfo.

"That changed the perspective of my dedication to cricket. I was really happy to hear that from him,” he had added.

On the other hand, Samson, after his unbeaten 97-run knock against the West Indies in the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026, credited the legends Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma for helping him learn on how to play according to the situation.

"I think playing IPL around 10 to 12 years and playing for the country for the 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, learn, and see what they were doing," said Samson at the post-match presentation after the match against the West Indies.

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