Former Sri Lanka batter and current Rajasthan Royals coach Kumar Sangakkara has hailed Sanju Samson as one of the best T20 players in the world right now.
The Royals retained Samson as their highest paid player ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction and he will be seen leading them in this season as well. Sangakkara said that retaining Samson was a no brainer considering the skill set the 27-year-old brings to the table.
“Irrespective of him being the captain or the future of RR, he is one of the best T20 players,” Sangakkara said during the Clubhouse conversation on Red Bull Cricket.
“He is a magnificent player, destructive, match-winner, has every ability that you want in a batter. He was captain before I took over last season. I have come to know him really well and admire him. He’s got such a passion for RR. He started here, he values that. He is a captain who is willing to admit that he doesn’t know everything as yet and he is going to grow into it. He’s got natural leadership qualities. He’s going to get better and better,” the Royals head coach added.
Earlier India captain Rohit Sharma had also hailed Samson’s batting prowess and explained why he feels India might need his skillset during the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year. According to Rohit, Samson’s ability to take on high-end pace and play the pull well makes him an excellent asset in Australian conditions.
“He’s a simple guy, a man of few words, very grounded. He’s absolutely suited for this job and it’s made working with him so much easier and fun. He’s got a sense of humour as well, and it comes out once in a while. He’s got a lot of pride, he wants to win. All I can do is give him the best support to be able to be that leader he knows he can be,” Sangakkara added.
Samson had one of his best IPL seasons last year even though the Royals finished in the bottom half of the table. He amassed 484 runs in IPL 2021 at an average of 40.33 and strike-rate of 136.72, which includes a century and two fifties. His 375 runs in the 2020 edition of the tournament came at an even better strike-rate of 158.89.
