IND vs ZIM 2022: “Cheers of ‘Chetta, Chetta’ make me feel proud” - Sanju Samson on his fan following

Team India wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson has stated that he is surprised by the kind of fan following he enjoys despite not having played a lot for the country. He admitted that the cheers of "chetta, chetta" (a word used to address elder males in Malayalam), even while playing abroad, make him feel proud.

Samson is with the Indian team in Zimbabwe for a three-match ODI series. The final game of the series is currently underway in Harare. Speaking ahead of the match, he opened up on his popularity among fans, saying:

“I feel surprised that despite playing very little for India, I get good support. I feel there are a lot more Malayalis as I hear cheers of ‘Chetta, Chetta’, even while playing abroad, which make me feel proud. I am really proud to be a Malayali and represent my country as a Malayali cricketer."

The keeper-batter was the Player of the Match in the second ODI for his unbeaten 43-run knock under pressure. He also took three catches behind the wickets. He said in this regard:

“I was really pumped up to be there in pressure situation and they were also bowling well. I really enjoyed the time in the middle.”

Despite playing well in recent matches for Team India, Samson has not been picked in the Asia Cup squad. Reflecting on his career ups and downs, he asserted:

“I am a believer that whatever you go through in your career, you have to take it in a positive manner. I really enjoyed playing domestic cricket in the last four-five years. It is challenging to do well there and that has made me be a better player.”

Samson has so far played six ODIs (excluding the ongoing match) and 16 T20Is for India, scoring 161 and 296 runs, respectively.

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“It has changed my perspective towards cricket” - Sanju Samson on the IPL impact

While the Kerala batter has had a stop-start international career, he has been one of the big names in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for a few years now.

He is the captain of the Rajasthan Royals (RR) franchise. Asked how playing in the T20 league has helped him, the 27-year-old responded:

“It has changed my perspective towards cricket. Earlier I used to think only about my batting, my game. Captaincy helps bring about a different mindset - think about others as well apart from your game.”

Samson has played in 138 IPL matches so far, scoring 3526 runs at an average of 29.14 and a strike rate of 135.72. He has three hundreds to his name in the competition.