Gautam Gambhir, under whom Sanju Samson was dropped multiple times, says India opener is a ‘world-class player’

Gautam Gambhir was forced to make a U-turn in his decision-making due to the poor form of his top-order batters and impactful cameos by Sanju Samson. And after Samson played a terrific match-winning knock of 97 not out in a must-win match against West Indies in the T20 World Cup 2026, Gambhir was also forced to praise the same batter whom he tried to drop multiple times.

Samson flourished under Gambhir as the opener of the Indian T20I team, scoring three centuries in the shortest format. But soon after, he was dropped lower down the order in the Asia Cup 2025 as Shubman Gill returned to the opening slot next to Abhishek Sharma. Samson was later dropped altogether from the playing XI as Jitesh Sharma became a part of the playing XI.

Gambhir forced to make U-turn on Sanju Samson

When Gill failed to score consistently, Ishan Kishan became the opener and Samson continued to warm the bench. But not for long. A stomach issue for Abhishek Sharma forced India to play Sanju in the group match of the T20 World Cup against Namibia, in which the Kerala batter scored a quick-fire 22 in just eight balls.

Samson was once again added to India’s playing XI in the Zimbabwe game after the Men in Blue suffered a chastening 76-run loss to South Africa in the Super 8 opener, pushing them to the brink. The poor form of Abhishek, Tilak Varma and captain Suryakumar Yadav left India with no option but to drop Rinku Singh and bring Samson back as an opener.

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That decision worked wonders with Samson making an impactful 24 against Zimbabwe as India kept their T20 World Cup campaign alive, and on Sunday, he scored a blistering 97 not out in just 50 balls, helping India reach the semi-finals.

Gambhir calls Samson ‘world-class’

Facing the media after the West Indies victory, Gambhir declared Samson as a “world-class” player, praising the same cricketer who consistently warmed the bench under the India head coach.

“He’s a world-class player, we all know how good a player Sanju is,” Gambhir said in the post-match presser. “It was all about backing him. When the team needed him the most - obviously today was the day - he showed his full potential.”

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Gambhir specifically praised Samson’s calmness as he delivered under pressure, without trying anything extraordinary.

“I actually felt that he never accelerated the innings,” Gambhir added. “It was just very normal cricketing shots and I never saw him muscling the ball as well. That is the kind of talent he has.

“Obviously, he had a tough series against New Zealand, so sometimes it’s important to give him a break as well, because you want to get the guy off that pressure situation as well. And we always knew that whenever we needed him in the World Cup game, he would come and deliver it for us.”

Reflecting on the comeback, Gambhir also added that India are just focussed on doing their best in every game, rather than dwelling on data or peaking at the right time.

“You’ve got to win every game that you represent your country,” he said. “There is nothing like peaking at the right time. It’s a short tournament, it’s a tournament that comes and goes very quickly. So you’ve got to try and play your A game every time.

“I don’t believe in data, honestly. I’ve never seen the data. I don’t even know what data is all about. I absolutely do not believe it. Because I feel it’s more about instinct. I think T20 cricket is about instinct and backing your instinct as well.”

While Samson has been dropped multiple times, he has come good once again, and Gambhir would hope the 31-year-old stays in similar form for two more games as India aim to become the first team to defend the T20 World Cup title.