Sanju Samson shares how Rahul Dravid became his biggest cheerleader; changed his life

The former India captain and legend Rahul Dravid played a massive role in shaping the future of the next generation of players. His influence, guidance and encouragement have been helping the players to make a name for themselves.

Before accepting the head coach duties of the Indian team, Dravid spent years coaching the India A and Under-19 teams, where his presence, advice and direction helped many youngsters to steer their way forward. 

Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, Prithvi Shaw, Shubman Gill, and some other players who are currently making noise in the ongoing edition of the IPL have been coached by Dravid at some points in their careers.  

One of the many youngsters that were groomed under the former India skipper is Sanju Samson, the current captain of Rajasthan Royals. The India wicketkeeper-batter recently recalled his early days when he garnered the eyeballs of Dravid. 

The power-hitter and stylish batter of Rajasthan revealed how he gave his best in the trials, supervised by Dravid to impress him with his shots. Meanwhile, the 27-year old also added that Dravid knew about him way before the trials, from his domestic days, and was eager to see Samson.

“That day, my heart was beating on another level. That day was one of the most special moments of my life. Never before or after have, I batted the way I did on those two days. Every time I’d hit the ball, Rahul Dravid would shout from behind, ‘What a shot. Shot Sanju’. That kept pumping me up. It was magical, really special. Even before the trial, he said to me, ‘I know you’re doing well in the domestic circuit, very excited to see you,” Samson said on Breakfast with Champions.

Sanju Samson, who made his Indian Premier League debut in 2013 for Rajasthan Royals, recalled the first few matches that he played for the franchise, where he got the opportunity to bat alongside Rahul Dravid. Recounting the moment, Samson reckoned that the former India batter told him to take his time in the middle and then play the shots, but after seeing the way Samson was batting, Dravid gave him a free hand and told him to keep going.

“I never thought I’d bat with Rahul Dravid. So in the first game that I played, I went one-down, and Rahul sir was opening. I knew they’d sent me to hit, so I went and hit the 1st ball, and it went for four runs. Then Rahul sir walked and said, ‘Sanju, take your time, a couple of balls and see what you can do’. I said, ‘Yes, sir. The next ball was a bouncer, I subconsciously pulled it, and it went for four. Sir came over and said, ‘Keep going, keep going,” Samson said.  

The 2014 edition of the Indian Premier League was the life-changing phase for Samson as he smacked 339 runs in 13 innings and was rewarded with a national call-up. From 2016 to 2017, he represented the Delhi Capitals, then made his way back to the Rajasthan Royals in 2018 and was appointed as the franchise captain before the 2021 edition of the tournament.