Sanju is a world class player, it was all about backing him: Gambhir

Moments after Sanju Samson rose to the occasion with an unbeaten 97 to power India into the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup semi-finals, head coach Gautam Gambhir credited the wicketkeeper-batter for delivering when it mattered most.

Chasing 196 in a must-win Super Eights clash against the West Indies at Eden Gardens, Samson’s knock helped India record a five-wicket victory with four balls to spare, setting up a semi-final showdown against England in Mumbai on Thursday. Samson’s 50-ball innings, studded with 12 fours and four sixes, thrilled a capacity crowd of 67,000 as he anchored the chase with authority and calm.

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Hailing the Kerala batter as a “world class player”, Gambhir said, “We all know how good a player Sanju is. It was all about backing him. When the team needed him the most – obviously this was the day – he showed his full potential.”

Reflecting on what stood out in the innings, Gambhir pointed to Samson’s control and timing from the outset.

“Look, I actually thought that he never accelerated the innings. It was just very, very normal cricketing shots and I never saw any muscling the ball as well and that is the kind of talent he has.

“When you know that you’re in control of the game and that you’re feeling good, he’s hitting the ball really well in the nets and it’s about going in the middle and showcasing that skill that you had and obviously he knew that the wicket was very good. A quick outfield as well but again I have always said that he is a world class player. He is a great talent and hopefully he can kick off from now and hopefully we can see a lot more innings like this from Sanju.”

Gambhir also noted that Samson had endured a difficult phase earlier, including a tough series against New Zealand, and felt managing that pressure was important.

“Obviously he had a tough series against New Zealand, so sometimes it’s important to give him a break as well, because you want to get the guy off that pressure situation as well. We always knew that whenever we needed him in the World Cup game, he’ll come and deliver it for us,” he elaborated.

The head coach further highlighted India’s disciplined effort with the ball in the power-play, where they conceded only 45 runs despite not picking up wickets. “I thought we started off really well, especially when you play this kind of a game of this magnitude. You’ve got to start off really well with the new ball, which Arshdeep and Hardik did.

“I think the way they started off in the first three overs was really good and then Axar bowled two overs in the powerplay, which was again a great job done by him. It’s never easy on this wicket on their ground to bowl two overs in a powerplay, but Axar did that really well. The powerplay didn’t go away from us, which was very important because once the powerplay goes away from you, it’s very difficult to control,” he added.

Gambhir also underlined the importance of Shivam Dube’s brief but impactful cameo of eight runs off four balls, in easing the pressure late in the chase. “For too many years, we’ve only spoken about certain contributions. This is a team sport and will always remain a team sport.

“For me, I think Shivam’s two boundaries are as important as Sanju’s 97, because had Shivam not been able to hit those two boundaries, you wouldn’t have even spoken about Sanju. The big contributions make headlines but those small contributions help the team go across the line and that is the philosophy in the team.”