Sanju Samson was one of the chief architects of India’s T20 World Cup 2026 triumph and he deservedly earned the Player-of-the-Tournament accolade.

The wicketkeeper-batter wasn’t part of India’s XI at the start of the competition but shone with Player-of-the-Match exploits against the West Indies and England before making the highest individual score in a Men’s T20 World Cup final versus New Zealand.

Samson finished the tournament as the third highest run-getter, amassing 321 runs from just five innings at an average of 80.25 and a remarkable strike rate of 199.37.

Speaking to Sportstar, Indian batting coach Sitanshu Kotak reflected on Samson’s redemption journey after warming the bench in the initial few games.

“While the best eleven were playing, our plan allowed the others to remain confident. For instance, when Sanju was not playing, he was still confident. I spoke to him that every other day things change, there could be injuries or poor form, and that he had to be prepared,” Kotak said.

“And he used to say, ‘Kotak bhai, aap chinta mat karo, main always prepared hoon, jab aap kahoge main kar dunga (Don’t worry, I am always prepared. Whenever you tell me to go and perform, I will do it).’ So all that actually came true. That was great,” the batting coach added.

After India’s top-order was blown away by the South African bowlers in the Super 8s, Sanju Samson returned to the opening role, and didn’t put a foot wrong in the remainder of the tournament.

Samson produced a match-winning 97* (50 balls) in the virtual quarterfinal against the West Indies, an attacking 89 (42 balls) against England in the semifinal, and another 89 (46 balls) in the final against New Zealand, powering India to a record third T20 World Cup title.

“Sanju kept batting in the semifinal and kept the team’s motto intact that the team’s interests are bigger than individual milestones,” praised Kotak. “That was evident from the fact that despite being close to a hundred, he did not push for it.”

When the batting coach urged Samson to go for the century, the latter reminded him about the team’s philosophy of not chasing personal milestones.

“I told Sanju, ‘Ek toh hundred karna hai,’ (you have to score one hundred). He replied with a smile: ‘On one hand you say it’s not about personal milestones, and on another you say score a hundred. How are two things possible?’”

According to Kotak, this kind of mentality taken forward by Samson spurred on the team and became the guiding hand for the whole unit.

“Obviously, he was joking, but it spoke volumes about the mindset of the team. Players never thought about their personal runs and always put the team first. That made the difference,” Kotak remarked.