Sanju Samson made a great impact with the bat in his first season with CSK.
Sanju Samson emerged as the cornerstone of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the IPL 2026 season. Following a high-profile trade move, the wicketkeeper-batter lived up to the expectations, amassing 477 runs in 14 innings at an average of 43.36 and a strike rate of 165.62, including two centuries.
During a conversation with Aakash Chopra for Star Sports, Samson highlighted the unique, supportive culture of the CSK dressing room and the leadership styles of Stephen Fleming, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and MS Dhoni.
Samson noted that despite failing in his first three games with the franchise, the management and senior players did not alter their attitude toward him. He also recalled Dhoni’s advice after a few tough outings.
"It is a huge franchise with a huge following, and people are very emotionally connected. For me, though, that dressing room feel was important. That's where I fall in line with Fleming, Gaikwad and Mahi bhai. When you fail, you need good people around you to understand that failure. When I went to CSK, I failed the first three games. But there was not even 1% change in the response from them. Mahi bhai asked me if I was okay after those three games. I told him I am okay but, and he told me don't get into the 'but'. That was a subtle but big lesson for me," Samson said.
After many years with the Rajasthan Royals, Samson felt mentally tired and believed the team was ready to move forward without him as their main leader. He had a few choices for his next team, but Dhoni's influence made him strongly want to join CSK.
"After playing for a while, you feel this is your team, and nobody can remove you from there. But I always had an awareness that there is a limited time for everyone. You do your part and move out when you want to. So one point came where I felt like not anymore. I think I should move on and got a feeling that RR is ready to play without Samson. So I thought of moving out then. There were two to three options, but there was Mahi bhai's influence. I thought it would be good if I went to CSK. But trade is a funny thing. I wanted to go, but what about whether they wanted me or not," he remarked.
Growing up, Samson was captivated by Dhoni's aura. He used to collect the former India captain’s promotional cutouts and keep them safely in his personal diary.
"The way MS Dhoni used to carry himself and his aggressive batting style attracted me in my school days. I used to keep his cutouts and keep them in my diary. He was my idol. I got one game to play with him when we were playing for India A against England A but I got out soon. Then I joined CSK, and destiny got me here. I thought I would get to play with him. But this time, unfortunately, he was not fit. So the dream to play with him is still alive," he said.
Sanju Samson is currently with the Indian team in England for a five-match T20I series. He featured in the series opener, but was dropped for the second T20I, with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi making his debut.