Not every cricketing journey is written in straight lines. Some are carved through detours, doubts, and long silences — and Sanju Samson’s career is a powerful testament to resilience.

From a young age, Samson was destined to be different. After representing Kerala at the under-13 level, he quickly rose to captain the State at under-16 and under-19 categories, emerging as one of the highest run-scorers.

His promise turned him into a Rajasthan Royal as he earned his IPL debut in 2013, a season in which he won the Emerging Player award.

In 2014, he was named the vice-captain of India’s under-19 World Cup team, finishing as the side’s top run-scorer — seemingly on the fast track to global stardom.

But international cricket is unforgiving. After his T20I debut in 2015, opportunities became sporadic.

A recall in 2020 ended in disappointment, and what followed were years of injuries, inconsistency, and selection uncertainty. Despite domestic dominance, Samson found himself on the fringes, watching others cement roles that seemed just out of his reach. The Indian T20I set-up looked settled, leaving little room for the wicketkeeper-opener.

Then came October 2024 — the turning point. Against Bangladesh, Samson smashed his maiden T20I century, a breathtaking 111 off 47 balls. What followed felt like destiny unfolding.

On the South Africa tour, he struck back-to-back centuries, becoming the first Indian batter to do so in T20Is, and later added a third, rewriting records and silencing doubters.

After a spell in the middle-order and being dropped from the XI, Samson is all set to return to the top for India’s T20 World Cup title defence.

Samson’s story underlines the fact that persistence outlasts rejection. After years of setbacks, resilience has finally earned him his place on the road to the 2026 T20 World Cup — not as a hopeful talent, but as a battle-hardened match-winner.