Bengaluru: There is a small story that tells a lot about the deep impact Samson Vishwanath had on his son Sanju. The Kerala cricketer returned to his hometown Vizhinjam like a star after his first IPL season for Rajasthan Royals. The young cricketers of the village who once played with Sanju on the streets were now hesitant in going near him. Sensing his hesitation, former Delhi Police officer Vishwanath asks Sanju to play with his old friends for some time.
The advice Sanju received from his father at that time was, “Never go away from your roots.” These words stayed with Sanju even when he faced the ups and downs of the game. In the recently concluded T20 World Cup, Samson became the best player of the tournament by scoring 321 runs.
“I think the main difference compared to his initial bouts is that he has regained stability in his legs, a strong base has always been his strength,” said Biju George, Samson’s debut coach. When he started going backwards into the crease, he lost his balance.
“But now he seems to have got that steady base back and it shows in his batting,” he said. The help of getting back to basics was clearly visible in the semi-final against England’s Jofra Archer in Mumbai. Knowing that Samson was struggling against the balls coming towards his body, Archer bowled a short ball but the right-handed batsman turned and pulled it behind square leg for a six. In his next over, Archer again tried to test Sanju’s ability against a short pitched ball and this time the opening batsman sent the ball into the second tier stands behind midwicket at the Wankhede Stadium. In these two shots, Sanju successfully dealt with his weakness against archer and bouncer. Sanju’s career was in danger before the last Super Eight match against West Indies. However, he helped India win its third T20 World Cup by playing unbeaten innings of 97, 89 and 89 runs in the last three important matches. With this, India became the first team to win the second consecutive and third overall T20 World title. Head coach Gautam Gambhir was also very happy with Samson’s effort and called him a special talent. Samson’s poor performance before he regained great form was a matter of concern for his father, who was his first cricket coach.
Vishwanath said, “I sent him a message (after the match against Zimbabwe). Do good for your country, you are already 31 and don’t let whatever opportunities come your way.” He said, ”I know he has all the skills because he has been playing serious cricket since the age of 13 and it was all about getting his mindset right. Don’t worry about the batting order or anything like that, just play with an open mind.” Samson seemed to take this advice to heart and scored three consecutive half-centuries.
Vishwanath said emotionally, “I know my podian (son). I have been watching him since a young age. I knew, we all knew that he would make a comeback.” He said, ”Now the whole country knows the talent of my pup (son) and this was the moment that I and everyone else in my family was waiting for. I hope to see him wearing the medal around his neck at home soon.”
Not only Samson’s family but the entire Kerala is eagerly waiting for his arrival in Thiruvananthapuram. The state has always produced some brilliant players which include PT Usha, Shiny Wilson, PR Sreejesh, Anju Bobby George, IM Vijayan and Jimmy George to name a few. But this southern state never had any international cricketer to show for it. S Sreesanth and Tinu Yohannan shone for some time but due to various reasons they could not prolong their careers. Samson’s performance in the World Cup has given the state a cricket icon. Right attractive heading
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