Anand Mahindra asks 'What's Sanju Samson's diet?'; Kevin Pietersen quips 'he'd gone vegan'

In-form Rajasthan batsman Sanju Samson on Sunday scored a blistering inning of 85 runs with 4 fours and 7 sixes to help his team register a victory over Punjab in a high scoring encounter in Sharjah. Samson has hit quickfire 74 and 85 in the last two innings, scoring a total of 159 runs at an average of 79.50.

'Quite simply, spectacular dedication!'

Impressed by Sanju Samson's performance, Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra curiously asked a question on Twitter about the Kerala cricket's diet and asked the netizens to share it with him. "Can someone please share with me what exactly this gentleman Samson’s daily diet is..?" Anand Mahindra asked. 

In a response to Anand Mahindra's query, former England cricket captain Kevin Pietersen replied that Sanju Samson "went vegan for a few months." Pietersen further said, "He then reintroduced eggs and meat into his diet. He trained like mad through lockdown. Quite simply, spectacular dedication!" It is not sure whether Pietersen knew about Samson's diet but it is evident that he was too very impressed by the match-winning inning. 

'The power comes from genes'

"I have been hitting it well for the past year. So I was just sticking to my routine and feeling confident. I am happy to win a few games," Samson said after helping Rajasthan beat Punjab by four wickets in the 9th match of the Dream11 IPL 2020.

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"I was trying hard but things were not happening. I did a lot of soul searching after being frustrated at trying stuff. Then I worked hard. I asked myself what do I need to achieve? I told myself I have 10 years of this wonderful game in me, and I have to give everything to these 10 years," he said. Talking about his power-hitting, he said, "The power comes from genes. My father is a very powerful man."

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The Rajasthan skipper Steve Smith also heaped praise on Samson. "Sanju is striking the ball cleanly all over the ground. Taking pressure off everyone," he said.

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Mayank Agarwal (106) and KL Rahul (69) had earlier shared a 183-run opening stand and it seemed at one time that Punjab would cross the 250-mark. Smith credited the bowlers for controlling things in the end. "Looked like we could be chasing over 250 at one point, credit to the bowlers for pulling things back," he said.

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