"He Has To Step Back": S Sreesanth's Blunt Take On Sanju Samson Ahead Of IPL 2023

Sanju Samson has been in and out of the Indian cricket team in the past few years. With Rishabh Pant cementing his position in the team and Ishan Kishan finding a great run of form in white-ball cricket, chances have been few for the Kerala-based cricketer. However, he has been a top performer in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as the skipper of Rajasthan Royals and his popularity has only grown with time. Former India cricketer S Sreesanth revealed his piece of advice to Samson during his early playing days and described him as a “very attacking captain” in the IPL.

“Sanju (is) a very attacking captain and sometimes, when the occasion comes, he has to step back a bit. That's something I've been telling him,” Sreesanth said in the IPL preview show on Star Sports.

“That's one, maybe he might have to balance between attacking and defending. Even when it comes to captaincy, he's still learning. But that will be one very important point when it comes to strengths and weaknesses. Sanju has to balance his thoughts and decision making,” he added.

Samson was one of the top performers for Rajasthan Royals in the last season of IPL and he took the team to the final along with the charismatic England cricketer Jos Buttler. Samson finished the season with 458 runs in 17 matches across the tournament at an impressive strike rate of 146.79.

Samson's captaincy was also praised for his effective bowling changes and although his side lost to Gujarat Titans in the final, a lot of experts and fans lauded him for his all-round performance.