NEW DELHI: India’s T20 World Cup hero Sanju Samson has opened up on his much-discussed exit from Rajasthan Royals, revealing that the decision stemmed from a simple realisation — his journey with the franchise had run its course.Now gearing up for a new chapter with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, Samson made it clear that emotions won’t cloud his focus when he comes up against his former side.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!“This is the first time I will play against Rajasthan Royals, but I don’t let emotions rule me on the field. I left Rajasthan Royals because I felt my time in the team was over. Even if we face them now, I will play my best cricket,” Samson said.

The highly anticipated clash will come early, with CSK set to face the Royals in their opening game of the season in Guwahati. While Samson admitted the occasion would feel “unusual,” he struck a balanced tone about the emotional aspect of the reunion.“I don’t think much about emotions on the ground as the situation dictates the game. But certainly before and after the match there will be emotions, as there are players and support staff with whom I have shared a long association,” he added.

Samson eyes fresh start with CSK

Samson’s move to CSK has already generated significant buzz, not least because of the opportunity to share a dressing room with MS Dhoni. The Kerala batter revealed he has already spoken to the CSK legend and is eager to learn from him.“I am really excited to be part of CSK. I had spoken to Dhoni bhai earlier and always had positive vibes. Spending close to two months with him will be a great opportunity to observe and learn,” he said.Samson also fondly recalled the support he received from Chennai fans during the T20 World Cup. “I was surprised by the support from the Chennai crowd. Maybe they see me as one of them. I don’t want to disappoint them and will give my best for CSK,” he said.Fresh off a stellar World Cup campaign, Samson now turns his focus to IPL 2026, determined to make a strong impact in yellow.

For someone who was looked at as dispensable not too long ago, Sanju Samson is suddenly in demand. One day, he is addressing conclaves and attending awards in New Delhi, the next day, he is flying back home to Thiruvanthapuram for an event. Just like the team desperately wanted him back as an opener, to break the stranglehold that off-spinners were having on the left-handers, everyone wants Samson. He will soon jet off to Chennai for IPL duties with the Chennai Super Kings. Describing the epochal victory as far more than just a sporting milestone, Samson called the win a deeply “spiritual experience.”Big words for someone who is looked at as a happygo-lucky character and, by his own admission, “not very emotional”. For Samson, one of the most memorable moments at the World Cup came quietly inside the dressing room after India’s crucial Super Eights win over the West Indies. “After the win against the West Indies, I created a spiritual place of my own in the dressing room and also offered a personal prayer,” Samson told reporters at an event here.

A victory beyond cricket

Describing India’s World Cup triumph as far more than just a sporting achievement, Samson called the experience deeply spiritual.“It was a spiritual moment. When you win something as big as the World Cup with your country, it feels like something greater than just sport,” Samson said during a recent event. The tournament lived up to its tagline “Feel The Thrill”, delivering electrifying powerplays, dramatic finishes and passionate crowds cheering “India! India!” from packed stadiums.One of Samson’s most memorable moments during the tournament came after India’s Super Eight victory against the West Indies national cricket team. “After the win against the West Indies, I created a spiritual place of my own in the dressing room and said a personal prayer,” he revealed.

Overcoming self-doubt

“I wasn’t very confident when I left home to play in the World Cup, but the universe had other plans,” he said. “The 97 not out against the West Indies was the most important innings for me because I had to stay calm even as wickets kept falling at the other end.”Samson also recalled an emotional moment after the final with India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir, one of the keeper-batter’s biggest backers. “Gauti bhai and I share a close relationship. He didn’t say much… he just hugged me for about 30 seconds. That was enough,” Samson said.

New chapter with Chennai Super Kings

Samson is now preparing for the next phase of his career with Chennai Super Kings, where he will share the dressing room with legendary wicketkeeper-batter MS Dhoni.“I have spoken with Mahi bhai a lot and have seen him on and off in the Indian team. But this will be the first time we spend two months together. There is a lot of excitement,” Samson explained.Interestingly, his first match in the yellow jersey will come against his former franchise, the Rajasthan Royals. “On the field, I don’t allow emotions to take over. I will always give my best for the team I represent,” he added.For Samson, cricket is about much more than trophies and personal milestones. The Indian star says he carries the dreams of countless youngsters every time he walks onto the field.

India’s captain Suryakumar Yadav, right, and Ishan Kishan. (AP Photo)

NEW DELHI: India’s T20 World Cup-winning captain Suryakumar Yadav has revealed that one of the biggest selection calls of the tournament — choosing Ishan Kishan over Jitesh Sharma — was largely driven by instinct rather than pure numbers. The skipper admitted the decision was tough but insisted his gut feeling told him Kishan could be the “X-factor” India needed on the big stage.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Suryakumar said the call was a delicate balance between data and intuition. “It was completely on gut, little bit on data. It was very harsh on Jitesh Sharma at that time because he was playing with the team for over a year. Had he not been playing, then the story would have been different,” he said in a podcast interview with PTI Videos.

The captain revealed that the turning point came during a direct conversation with Kishan. “I called him and asked, ‘Chhotu, World Cup jitayega?’ He asked, ‘Bharosa karogey?’ I said, ‘Chal kiya.’ And the way he played was amazing,” Suryakumar recalled. “I always knew he could be the X-factor because he has no baggage.”Kishan justified that faith in style during the tournament, scoring 317 runs in nine matches at a strike rate of over 190 while opening the innings and batting at No. 3. His tally was the fourth-highest in the competition as India lifted the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup for the second consecutive time, following their triumph under Rohit Sharma in 2024.Suryakumar also highlighted Kishan’s determination to fight his way back into the national setup after a difficult phase. “He was going through a bad patch and had been out of the team for a while. But he travelled across India playing practice matches and smaller games just to stay ready,” he said.Another tactical call that proved decisive was the inclusion of Sanju Samson at the top of the order. According to Suryakumar, Samson’s arrival changed the momentum of India’s campaign. “After Sanju got included, the tide completely changed. It was also tactical because we had too many left-handers at the top and opposition off-spinners were finding it easy.”Samson responded with match-winning performances, including scores of 89 in both the semifinal and final, eventually earning the Player of the Tournament award.Reflecting on his own approach, Suryakumar described T20 batting as largely instinctive. “It’s a reaction-driven sport. Around 70 to 75 per cent of batting is reaction and the rest is instinct. On a given day, you just assess what the situation demands and bat accordingly,” he said.

New Delhi: Indian men’s cricket team player Sanju Samson with a trophy during the BCCI Naman Awards 2026. (PTI Photo)

Sanju Samson, the standout performer and Player of the Tournament in India’s 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup victory, admitted he still wakes up in disbelief at winning the title on home soil. Yet, he is confident that India’s continuous stream of emerging talent ensures more triumphs in the years ahead.“Not yet, I am still like, when I get up in the morning, I’m like, ‘has it really happened’. So honestly, that’s the feeling. But I feel that in the coming years, with the quality of players we have in our country, this is going to be repeated. The number of players who are coming up in India is definitely going to do this more and more often,” Samson told broadcasters at the BCCI awards in New Delhi on Sunday.Samson’s tournament performance was extraordinary. Despite not being part of India’s starting XI, he amassed 321 runs in just five innings at a strike rate approaching 200. His innings included a match-winning 97* against West Indies in the Super Eight stage, followed by 89 in both the semi-final against England and the final versus New Zealand.Reflecting on his journey, Samson said, “You can only dream where you want to go, but you can’t definitely ride the path towards it. So my life or my career has been one of the best examples. I definitely wanted to do this a couple of years ago. I want to win a World Cup for my country, but it had its own plan, its own script. So, it’s more like a movie. I enjoyed it.“As I said before, I wanted to do something like this, then I got pulled out of my journey, and then suddenly, the team wanted me to contribute, and that’s when I actually mentally flipped a bit… I think, before that, in the New Zealand series, the focus was all about me.“But in the World Cup, the focus is all about the team, what the team requires. And in the Zimbabwe game, right from that moment, everyone wanted me to contribute. I had a role to play. So that’s when the shift happened and the confidence that, okay, ‘the team needs you, Sanju’, and let’s do what you can to the best. So that’s where everything started from.“And then I had the experience, I was working mentally. I was working physically, so I knew that I was ready, and I knew that this was meant for me, so I just had to do what I know best.”Samson’s story was not the only one of perseverance. Fast bowler Mohammed Siraj, who joined the squad late as a replacement for the injured Harshit Rana, described his journey to a second T20 World Cup medal as almost miraculous. “I was not in the initial squad, then I got it, played a game, and now I have been part of two World Cup-winning squads. I would say it’s a miracle for me,” he said.

India’s Sanju Samson (ANI Photo)

Former India captain and head coach Rahul Dravid, recently honoured with the Col CK Nayudu Lifetime Achievement Award at the BCCI’s annual awards function, expressed his gratitude for the recognition and reflected on the opportunities he has had throughout his cricketing journey. Speaking to Star Sports, Dravid said, “I’m very grateful for receiving the award. Very grateful for the many opportunities that I’ve received in my life and the opportunities that I’ve got,”.Dravid recalled his career with humility, noting, “I was lucky to have played with some of the greatest cricketers and been lucky to have travelled the world playing for my country. I’ve been lucky to be involved in the game after I retired as well and very humbled by the opportunities the game has given me.”

The former skipper also praised Sanju Samson, who was named Player of the Tournament for his match-winning performances in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. “It was really nice to see Sanju be able to sort of get it all together in those final three games — very important games for India,” Dravid said.He highlighted Samson’s perseverance, saying, “For a long time, Sanju has been in and out of the team. He has performed well, he also has had some tough times. It was just really good to see someone like him who’s worked pretty hard.”Dravid added, “It’s really nice to see when it all comes together and the success that he did at such a critical and important phase for Indian cricket.”Samson’s tournament was nothing short of extraordinary. Playing just five matches after being drafted into the side following India’s loss to South Africa, the 31-year-old scored 321 runs, producing three consecutive half-centuries at key stages. He smashed an unbeaten 97 against the West Indies in the virtual quarter-final, followed by scores of 89 in both the semi-final against England and the final against New Zealand.The wicketkeeper-batter set multiple records, hitting 24 sixes — the most in a single T20 World Cup edition — and registering 89 in the final, the highest individual score in a T20 World Cup final, surpassing Marlon Samuels’ 85* in 2016 and Kane Williamson’s 85 in 2021. His 321-run tally also became the highest by an Indian in a single T20 World Cup, overtaking Virat Kohli’s 319 runs in 2014.

NEW DELHI: Big tournaments often reveal the finer aspects of leadership, and former Australia captain Ricky Ponting observed plenty of that in the way India navigated their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 campaign under skipper Suryakumar Yadav.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!India entered the tournament as favourites, carrying high expectations while also dealing with form concerns within the squad. The captain himself endured a difficult campaign with the bat. Apart from a rescue knock of 84* off 49 balls in the opener against USA, Yadav scored 158 runs across the remaining eight innings. Despite that, he guided the team to peak at the most crucial moments.

Ponting believes the true measure of captaincy often lies behind closed doors.“It’s about a lot more than what they do off the field, the things that people don’t see and how they interact with their players,” Ponting said as per the ICC website.The Australian great also pointed out that leading a side becomes even tougher when a captain’s personal form dips, something Yadav experienced during the tournament.“He didn’t have a great time himself as a player, but still he’s standing at the end holding up a World Cup trophy,” Ponting noted. “I know, as a former captain, when you’re not batting at your absolute best, captaincy can become really difficult. And when you are batting well, captaincy can become really easy.”Ponting also highlighted how Yadav managed players under pressure, especially those struggling with form and confidence.“It would have been really interesting to see how Surya has interacted with Abhishek (Sharma) and Sanju (Samson) over the last few weeks. That’s where the real stories will come out on true leadership,” he added.Abhishek Sharma, the ICC No. 1-ranked T20I batter, had a turbulent run during the tournament. He registered three consecutive ducks, followed by low scores of 15, 10 and 9, and managed only one fifty before the final. However, on the biggest stage of the tournament, he found his form again, smashing 52 off 21 balls and recording the fastest fifty of the 2026 edition in just 18 deliveries.“You don’t have to worry about the staples, it’s more the guys on the fringe and the younger guys going up and down with their emotions and battling with their form, the ones you have to spend the most time with,” he noted.A key tournament decision came at the top of the order when Sanju Samson was given renewed backing. His first opportunity came early in the campaign as cover for Sharma, but he was dropped again before being recalled for a crucial fixture against Zimbabwe. Samson seized the opportunity and turned it into a dominant run.A blistering 97* in a virtual knockout against West Indies sparked his surge. He followed it up with scores of 89 (42) in the semifinal against England and 89 (46) in the final against New Zealand. In just five innings, Samson amassed 321 runs — the most by an Indian in a single T20 World Cup.Ponting emphasised the importance of India’s faith in the wicketkeeper-batter.“For India to stick with him at the top there, that was a big call to make. A big decision, but one that worked out really well in the end,” he said. “If you get the backing of the coaching staff and the captain, then that’s all you need… Just a pat on the back or an arm around the shoulder to say, ‘we’re sticking with you, we believe in you.”“When you’ve got the quality that Sanju’s got, and the confidence of the captain and coach behind you, that’s when great things can happen,” he concluded.