India Coach Reveals How Off-Spin Troubles Led To Team Bringing Back Sanju Samson: 'We Had To Utilise Him'

The Suryakumar Yadav-led Indian cricket team made history in Ahmedabad after successfully defending the T20 World Cup title. The scars of 2023 were healed after they broke the Narendra Modi Stadium jinx.

While they clinched a historic victory in the T20 World Cup, the way they kicked off their tournament was not pleasant. The Indian top-order batters primarily faltered in the group stage, with off-spin bowling being their kryptonite.

Sitanshu Kotak shed light on how a major realisation following their Super 8 defeat to South Africa led to Sanju Samson's return to the Indian playing fold.

From Spin Problems to Samson's Return: Coach Lifts the Lid

India's batting coach Sitanshu Kotak revealed that the team realised that their batting order was vulnerable. The left-handed top-order were exposed against off-spin, with the frequent fall of wickets forcing them to rethink their strategy.

Kotak further added that the team's strategy pivot led to Sanju Samson's inclusion in the squad. The management wanted to break the left-handed combination, which brought Samson back into the fold.

"We realised that against off-spin we had three left-handers at the top because Tilak was batting at No. 3. But after a point, there is no point being stubborn. We had four games where we lost a wicket in the first over, and that was the moment when we started thinking differently.

“Sometimes you can also say it is God's plan. In a way, it worked like that for us because it made us think that we had to utilise Sanju. Rinku was not getting many opportunities at No. 8. At the start, we also needed to break that left-left-left combination. That is how Sanju came back into the picture,” Sitanshu Kotak said to Cricbuzz.

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Sanju Samson Was An Absolute Firecracker In T20 World Cup 2026

The ICC T20 World Cup emerged as the ultimate spot for redemption for Sanju Samson, who delivered a standout performance after being included in the Super 8 stage. His performance helped him earn the Player of the Tournament honours and also helped India win back-to-back ICC T20 titles.

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Sanju Samson produced a fiery innings, scoring 321 runs in just five innings at a strike rate of 199.37 and an average of 80.25. The wicketkeeper-batter smashed 27 boundaries and 24 sixes to become the leading run-scorer for India in a single T20 World Cup tournament.

Samson displayed promise, putting up one of his finest performances in the T20 World Cup 2026.