Sanju Samson, the talent that needs consistency

Sanju Samson, the talent that needs consistency: Sanju Vishwanath Samson, 21, wicketkeeper-batsman, has emerged as the flag-bearer of cricket for the state of Kerala, one of the few regions in India where football’s popularity and following outdoes that of cricket.

His highly impressive technique and the ability to time the ball well saw him earn a place in Kerala’s U-19 team in 2012. A consistent outing in the Cooch Behar Trophy promoted him into India’s team for the U-19 Asia Cup in 2012.

Sanju made his first-class debut in November 2011, in the drawn match against Vidarbha in Nagpur. Since then he has played in 28 games (46 innings), accumulating 1,550 runs at an average of 36.90 with 211 as his best, which he scored in 2013, playing against Assam in Guwahati. His knock helped Kerala to take a 19-run first innings lead over the hosts. Assam had scored 323 in the first innings.

Sanju was the highest scorer in Ranji Trophy 2013-14 after the second round of matches with 377 runs in 2 matches at an average of 188.5. In all, he played six matches (11 innings) and ended up as Kerala’s highest run-getter, scoring 530 runs at an average of 58.88. He also has five centuries and four half-centuries to his credit. Doing duty behind the stumps, Sanju has taken 36 catches.

In the Quadrangular ‘A” team ODI series in Australia in 2014, Samson was India A’s highest run aggregator with a tally of 244 runs from seven matches. He also registered a couple of half-centuries.

Samson’s hunger for success and eagerness to learn are other attributes that stand out according to India-A assistant coach Abhay Sharma. He also insists that the teenager is “definitely the future” for India.

In 2014, Samson was selected to the 17-member Indian squad for a series of 5 ODIs and a lone T20I against England (in England), as a back-up wicket-keeper for Indian skipper, MS Dhoni. However, the young Samson did not get an opportunity to play.

BCCI’s premium tournament, Indian Premier League, has been a great boon for the young Kerala batsman. In the IPL, Samson was a member of the Kolkata Knight Riders players’ pool in 2012 but did not play any game. In 2013, auction, he was bought by Rajasthan Royals.

Having played in 38 IPL matches, Samson has scored a total of 749 runs at an average of 24.16 with 76 as the highest tally. He has 4 half centuries, 27 catches and 2 stumpings to his credit.

Biju George, Samson’s coach, who also doubles up as a coach with SAI told IBN Live, “Sanju is a combination of Dravid and AB as he is a package of flamboyance and dogged determination. He is as flamboyant and as determined as Dravid is. He exudes Dravid’s intensity to build innings and play for a long time in the middle. He knows to pace the innings as Dravid does. Every time he talks to Dravid, he gets to learn more about the game.”

However, the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2015-16 has not been very productive for this youngster. Leading his side Kerala, Sanju has featured in 7 games (10 innings) and has been able to score only 154 runs, including a century (101) against J&K in the tournament opener. But for the century his knocks have been a pathetic 3, 1, 9, 12, 28, 1, 0, 1 and 8.

For a player who showed so much of promise when he shot into fame, the performance has not lived up to it.

Speaking to reporters, the former India A coach, Chandrakant Pandit said, “He (Sanju) needs to work on his consistency and at the same time on temperament. Sometimes he gets carried away. I have told him to be a calculative cricketer, take the risk but be calculative. He is lucky to get more opportunities, but he will have to find answers soon for his consistency.”

Team India is still on the hunt for a reliable wicket-keeper-batsman for the Test team. With Dhoni retiring from Tests and Wridhhiman Saha not putting in any kind of significant performance, there is an opportunity for this Kerala youngster to stake a claim. There are other claimants too in the form of Robin Uthappa, who is having a ‘great run’ in the Ranji Trophy tournament and Dinesh Karthik, who comes up with a few good ones.

If only Samson clearly works on his consistency and scores runs in the domestic circuit, the 21-year old could have a wonderful international career ahead of him, more so, since age is on his side.