{"id":"f-733bd7eecd-71b5654a-7179-589f-9cc9-c635a26130fa","title":"\"Switched off phone and social media, and listened to myself\": Sanju Samson on comeback knock","description":"","timestamp":0,"category":"sports","headline":"\"Switched off phone and social media, and listened to myself\": Sanju Samson on comeback knock","modifiedHeadline":"How Samson flipped the script with 97* vs WI!","subCategories":["scid_185ed133"],"subcategoriesName":["Cricket"],"region":"IN","bundleMetaData":{"bundleId":"6ff0e53c-03a9-4fac-a199-00040694f01a","bundleTitle":"Indian Cricket","cardData":null},"iabCategoryId":"491","iabCategoryName":"Cricket","fcSummary":"India secured a semi-finals spot in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, defeating the West Indies by five wickets, thanks to Sanju Samson's pivotal innings. Samson discussed adapting his approach during the chase, highlighting the importance of experience and finishing the game. He credited self-reflection and technique adjustments for his performance, emphasizing a positive mindset. Aakash Chopra noted a fortunate combination shift, with Tilak Varma’s placement unlocking potential. Jasprit Bumrah’s crucial spell was also key to the victory.","summary":"Sanju Samson's crucial knock secures India's T20 World Cup semi-final spot! He switched off distractions, listened to himself, & delivered.","ctaUrl":"https://trends.glance.com/newz/sports/IN/en/sportstiger/f-733bd7eecd-71b5654a-7179-589f-9cc9-c635a26130fa","sourceUrl":"https://www.sportstiger.com/cricket/switched-off-phone-and-social-media-and-listened-to-myself-sanju-samson-on-comeback-knock","bannerImage":"https://g-mob.glance-cdn.com/public/fc/image/dz7RqiOcOGX0.webp","content":"

India rode on a clutch knock from Sanju Samson to qualify for the semi-finals of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 after beating the West Indies by five wickets. Sanju Samson and Aakash Chopra reflected

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on the 196-run chase, the changes made to the playing XI and Jasprit Bumrah's spell.

Sanju Samson touched upon the changes he had to make in his approach during the run-chase:

\"It was a bit of a difficult chase. Looking at our batting power, I felt that chasing 190-odd at Eden Gardens, when dew comes in, gets a bit easier, but losing wickets at regular intervals made it challenging. To be honest, that's where my experience and my role played a big part. I got a good start, but when the wickets kept falling, I felt I needed to finish the game and take it till the last moment. Normally you feel like doing it, but it doesn't happen all the time, so I am very grateful it happened in this game. When you are batting first, you want to set up a big score and hit a lot of sixes, but when you are chasing a score like this in a pressure game, you take different options and play more boundaries rather than looking at risk-taking options. The ball was coming on nicely, they were bowling with good pace, so I kept timing it and it came well.\"

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On his lean patch and the changes he made to his technique:

\"Our human nature is that we often start from a negative thought like, 'Can I do it? I don't think I can.' When I have that thought, I try to alter it with a very positive one. When I had a series like New Zealand where I wanted to perform and be part of the World Cup team, things did not work out well, but luckily I got a 10-day gap. I did not play any games and was not in the side. I kept thinking, 'Sanju, what else? Why didn't it work? What else should I do?' So I did some soul-searching. I worked on my base, how I set myself up, and came back to it. A lot of people had suggestions and I saw a lot of valid points, but at the same time I felt, 'Sanju, you have scored three international hundreds with the same setup.' Shot selection was something I kept working on. I did not want to change too much because I knew I had performed with the same setup, so I kept believing in myself, switched off my phone, switched off social media and listened to my own self. I am very happy it happened in a very special game.\"

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On what the Kolkata knock meant for him:

\"More than a hundred cricketers in India dream about a day like this. I dared to dream. A young guy from Trivandrum, Kerala, dreaming about playing for the country and winning a game in such a crucial match. I dared to dream and it happened.\"

Aakash Chopra shared his thoughts on how moving Tilak Varma down to number five has unshackled him:

\"One stroke has basically changed the fortunes of two players because Sanju eventually gets to open and he does what he has already done. Tilak Varma was struggling at three and suddenly he is pushed to a number where you do not really have a choice, but to hit. Now he is batting at the number where he has done well in the past for the Mumbai Indians, so Sanju at the top and Tilak in the middle. I will be very honest, we accidentally stumbled upon this combination because we were convinced, you start the tournament with Plan A. Plan A was Abhishek Sharma in red-hot form, Ishan Kishan making a strong comeback, Tilak at three and Surya at four. But we stumbled upon this opportunity because teams started bowling off-spin and Abhishek lost form. In all this, Ishan might feel slightly hard done by, but in a team sport, it is not always about justice, and right now this is what is right for the team.\"

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On Jasprit Bumrah's crucial two-wicket over in the middle phase:

\"I keep saying that Bumrah is a genius. He is an asset and a national treasure. The way he controlled the innings, in the end it reads 2 for 36, but the roles we spoke about mattered more. Had he bowled the first and the third over, the numbers from an economy perspective might have looked even better, but that is not what you need in the end. West Indies had the deepest batting line-up one can possibly have, and still they were four down and had not crossed 200. And yes, Jasprit Bumrah is the kind of bowler who does not let that happen.\"

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"Switched off phone and social media, and listened to myself": Sanju Samson on comeback knock

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