Sanju Samson has revealed how a difficult phase during the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup eventually became the turning point of his tournament, admitting he felt “absolutely broken” after being left out of India’s starting XI at the beginning of the competition.
Speaking at the India Today Conclave in New Delhi, Samson said missing out on the initial matches was emotionally challenging because winning a World Cup had always been one of his biggest dreams.
“I was absolutely broken because my dream was to win the World Cup and I was not even in the XI,” Samson said, reflecting on the early part of the tournament.
The wicketkeeper-batter had struggled in the bilateral T20I series against New Zealand just before the World Cup, registering scores of 10, 6, 0, 24 and 6. As a result, India opted to start the tournament with Ishan Kishan opening alongside Abhishek Sharma.
Samson got his first opportunity when Abhishek fell ill ahead of India’s match against Namibia. However, he was again left out once the regular opener returned, forcing him to spend time away from the team environment to mentally reset.
“I went away for five-six days and started rebuilding myself, preparing for whatever opportunity might come,” Samson said.
His chance eventually arrived when India faced Zimbabwe in a crucial stage of the tournament. With India needing a series of wins to stay on track, Samson said the must-win scenario motivated him.
“Right from the Zimbabwe game we had to win four out of four matches, and the team needed me. That fired me up,” he explained.
Samson responded with an unbeaten 97 against West Indies in the Super Eight stage, followed by identical scores of 89 in the semi-final against England and the final against New Zealand. His remarkable turnaround helped India lift the title and earned him the Player of the Tournament award.