Sanju Samson reveals how he impressed Rahul Dravid to earn his first contract with Rajasthan Royals.

In the past few seasons of the Indian Premier League, Sanju Samson has been an integral component of Rajasthan Royals. The 28-year-old has played the most matches and scored the most runs for the franchise in the history of the IPL. Samson has also led the Royals in the second-most matches, trailing only the legendary Shane Warne.

In 2012, he began his IPL tenure with the Kolkata Knight Riders, but the wicketkeeper batter did not play a single game. The following season, he was recruited by Rajasthan Royals and made his IPL debut with them. Recently, the cricketer from Kerala disclosed the intriguing circumstances surrounding his signing with the Royals.

He disclosed that former India cricketer S Sreesanth, his Kerala teammate, accompanied him to RR trials. Samson further disclosed that Rahul Dravid and Paddy Upton monitored his performance during the trial.

“Sresanth accompanied me to the RR trials. Dravid attended. Paddy Upton attended. I had low expectations for the trials because I did not know what type of athletes were being sought. It was a two-day trial, but it was very exceptional because I’ve never batted so well again,” Samson said on Star Sports.

If a legend such as Rahul Dravid says, ‘I’m good enough,’ then I am good enough: Sanju Samson
The 28-year-old also described the magical moment when Dravid gave him the contract to play for Rajasthan and the impact that Dravid’s praise had on his self-assurance.

“Then Rahul sir came to me and said, ‘You are absolutely doing an excellent job. Are you interested in playing for RR?’ Given that it came from Rahul sir, I was filled with confidence. “If a legend like him says ‘I’m good enough,’ then I’m good enough,” he continued.

Samson continued to play for RR through the 2015 season before being recruited by Delhi for the 2016 and 2017 campaigns. In 2018, he returned to Rajasthan and has since remained with the franchise. The wicketkeeper-batsman was named captain of the team in 2021 and led them to the final in 2022 for the first time since their 2008 championship season.