A Journey That Will Move You to Tears .Ek baap ki kurbaani, ek bete ka sapna, aur cricket ki duniya mein ek aisa safar jo aapko sochne par majbur kardega how patience actually works.
“Kuch log talent lekar aate hain. Sanju Samson takleef lekar aaye aur talent bana liya.”
Sanju Samson: The Early Life Timeline: Shuruat Se Lekar Stardom Tak Yeh sirf ek cricketer ki kahaani nahi hai. Yeh ek insaan ki kahaani hai jo toot-toot ke bana, girte-girte sambhla, aur aakhir mein duniya ke saamne aisa khada hua ki sab ne sar jhuka liya.
A reminder that greatness isn’t loud, it’s simply the quiet determination to Never give up.
Aao dekhte hain kaise guzra yeh safar, saal dar saal:
- 1994: 11 November. Kerala ke chhote se coastal gaon Pulluvila mein janam hua. Ek police constable ka beta. Ghar mein na cricket ka mahaul tha, na koi bada naam. Sirf ek chota sa sapna tha jo aankhon mein tha, par zuban pe nahi aaya tha.
- Early 2000s: Delhi ke GTB Nagar police colony mein pala-badha. Tangi galiyaan, chhote ghar, lekin dil bada. Roz shaam ko bat uthata, ghanton tak akela practice karta. Coach Yashpal ke saath DL DAV Model School academy mein training shuru hui.
- Under-13 Rejection: Delhi Under-13 trials mein selection nahi mili. Yeh rejection toot sakti thi. Par papa Samson Viswanath ne ise signal maan liya. Delhi Police se voluntary retirement liya. Poori family Kerala shift ho gayi. Sirf ek bete ke sapne ke liye. Apni poori naukri, apni security, sab kuch daanv pe laga diya.
- 2010-2012: Kerala junior circuit mein dhamaka kiya. Selectors hairan the. Talent aisa tha ki aankhein rok nahi sakti thi. India Under-19 Asia Cup squad mein jagah mili. Pehli baar duniya ne dhyaan diya.
- 2013: IPL debut. Rajasthan Royals. Sirf 18 saal ki umra. Rahul Dravid khud ne trials mein choose kiya. 206 runs, 13 catches, Emerging Player of the Year award. Sabse kam umra mein IPL mein 1000 runs.
- 2013-14 Ranji Trophy: Pehle hi game mein double century. Season mein 530 runs at an average of nearly 60. Duniya dekh rahi thi lekin India team ka darwaza abhi band tha.
- 2015: India T20I debut. Zimbabwe ke khilaf. Mauka mila par poori tarah nahi. Chances milte, phir door ho jaate. Yeh silsila saalon tak chala aur andar hi andar jalaata raha.
- 2019: Vijay Hazare Trophy mein unbeaten 212. List-A cricket mein India ka 6th double century. Jaise maidan par chillaya ho, main hoon, main hamesha se hoon.
- 2021: Rajasthan Royals ki captaincy mili. Debut match mein 119 off 63 balls. Ek naye adhyay ki shuruaat.
- 2022: IPL Final tak team ko pahunchaya. 458 runs. Gujarat se haare par dil jeet liya.
- 2023-24: Pehli ODI century vs South Africa. T20I century vs Bangladesh. Ek hi saal mein TEEN T20I centuries. Duniya mein pehla.
- 2024: World Cup squad mein tha par ek bhi match nahi khela. Woh dard jo andar hi andar jalta raha.
- 2025: Jofra Archer ki bouncer se ungli tooti. Champions Trophy miss ki. Par phir bhi utha. South Africa mein do back-to-back centuries.
- 2026: T20 World Cup mein India ki jeet. Player of the Tournament. Aur ek aisa safar poora hua jo rulata bhi hai aur inspire bhi karta hai.
A Dream Born in a Police Colony
Delhi ka GTB Nagar. Ek choti si police colony. Galiyaan tangi, makaan chhote, aur zindagi seedhi-saadhi. Lekin usi colony ke ek apartment mein ek ladka roz shaam ko apna cricket bat uthata tha aur ghanton tak practice karta raha. Jaise koi keh raha ho usse, ruk mat, teri duniya badi hai.
Woh ladka tha Sanju Viswanath Samson. 11 November 1994 ko Kerala ke ek chhote se coastal gaon Pulluvila mein paida hua. Papa Samson Viswanath Delhi Police mein constable the. Ghar mein cricket ka koi background nahi tha, koi bada naam nahi tha. Par Sanju ke haathon mein ek alag hi baat thi. Ball bat se milti thi toh awaaz alag aati thi. Jaise sunaai deta tha, yeh ladka alag hai.
Coach Yashpal ne use DL DAV Model School academy mein train kiya. Sanju ka talent saaf dikhta tha. Timing lajawab thi, technique solid thi, aur aankhon mein ek aisi bhookh thi jo sirf woh log rakhte hain jinhe pata hota hai ki unhe kahin bahut door tak jaana hai.
ALSO READ: The Redemption of Sanju Samson: Captaincy, Pain, Comeback, and Glory
A Father’s Sacrifice That Changed Everything
Phir aaya woh din jo Sanju ke dil pe aaj bhi likha hai.
Delhi Under-13 trials. Sanju selection nahi hua. Ek baar nahi, results ne haath nahi diya. Kisi ke liye yeh ek rejection hota. Par Sanju ke papa ke liye yeh ek signal tha. Unhone soch liya, agar mera beta Delhi ke system mein nahi chala, toh hum system badlenge.
Samson Viswanath ne Delhi Police se voluntary retirement le liya. Job gayi. Security gayi. Ek stable zindagi gayi. Poora parivaar pack karke Kerala chala gaya, sirf isliye ki Sanju ka sapna poora ho sake. Socho ek pal. Apna career khatam karna apne bete ke liye. Yeh sirf ek baap ka faisla nahi tha. Yeh ek dua thi, ek wada tha, ek pyaar tha jo shabd nahi jaanta.
Aur Sanju ne yeh kabhi nahi bhula. Aaj bhi jab woh chauka maarta hai, jab woh wicket ke peeche ek perfect stumping karta hai, us moment mein uske papa ki kurbaani bhi hoti hai. Har run ek shukriya hai. Har century ek sajda hai.
“Papa ne apni carrer diya mera carrer banane ke liye. Main yeh kabhi nahi bhool sakta.”
Talent Finds Its Ground in Kerala
Kerala aake Sanju ne jaise naya janam liya. Junior circuit pe chhaa gaya. Selectors hairan the. IPL 2013. Ek 18 saal ka ladka Rajasthan Royals trials mein aaya. Aur koi aur nahi, Rahul Dravid khud, The Wall, ne use choose kiya. Socho. Jab Dravid tumhe select kare, toh samajh lo tumne kuch toh sahi kiya hai.
Debut season mein 206 runs, 13 catches, aur Emerging Player of the Year award. Sabse kam umra mein IPL mein 1000 runs. Sabse kam umra mein Ranji Trophy team ki captaincy. Ek ke baad ek record toot rahe the, jaise Sanju keh raha ho, main yahan hoon, mujhe ignore karna mushkil ho jayega.
A young boy from Kerala with a quiet dream and a fearless bat, he carried talent that everyone could see. But the road to proving it at the highest level was never easy.
The Long Wait for the Indian Team
2015 mein India debut hua. Zimbabwe ke khilaf ek T20I. Par uske baad jo hua, woh bahut dardnak tha. International cricket mein chances milte, phir door ho jaate. IPL pe record banaata, phir bhi national team mein jagah nahi milti. Log sawaal uthate, itna talented hai toh play kyun nahi karta? Sanju ke paas koi jawab nahi tha. Sirf wait tha.
Kya aapne kabhi feel kiya hai ki aap sahi hain, aap taiyaar hain, par duniya aapko mauka nahi de rahi? Sanju ne woh dard baar baar jeea. Lekin woh ruka nahi. Practice maidan par aata raha. Ball se baat karta raha. Aur ek din, October 2019, Vijay Hazare Trophy mein ek unbeaten 212. List-A cricket mein India ka sixth double century. Jaise usne duniya ko kaha, dekh lo, main kahin nahi gaya.
Phir aaya 2023-24 ka woh golden period. South Africa ke khilaf pehli ODI century. Bangladesh ke khilaf T20I century. India ka second fastest. Aur phir history. Ek hi calendar year mein TEEN T20I centuries. Pehla player duniya mein jo yeh kar sake. MS Dhoni ka record toda. Indian wicketkeeper ke most T20I sixes ka record. Aur 2026 T20 World Cup mein Player of the Tournament. Sabr ka fal mitha hota hai. Sanju ne yeh sabit kar diya, ‘’form is temporary but class is permanent”.
What Sanju Samson Teaches Us About Life
Sanju Samson ki kahaani sirf cricket nahi hai. Yeh kahaani hai un sabke liye jo feel karte hain ki unhe overlook kiya ja raha hai. Jo sochte hain ki unka waqt kabhi nahi aayega. Jo haare nahi hain, par thak gaye hain.
Yeh kahaani kehti hai, ruko mat. Taiyaar raho. Jab mauka mile, toh use itni khoobsurti se uthaao ki phir koi tumhe ignore na kar sake. Apne papa ki kurbaani ko apni kami mat banne do. Use apni taakat bana lo.
Sanju Samson. Ek naam nahi, ek ehsaas hai. Ek yaad dilaata hai ki sapne sach hote hain. Bas unhe jeene ki himmat chahiye.
Neha is an optometry student who checks eyes by day and tracks wickets by night. She can read a match situation faster than she reads her textbooks (which honestly isn’t hard). She believes a well-timed cover drive is as satisfying as a perfect prescription. Somewhere between anatomy diagrams and batting averages, she found her calling. Warning: may spontaneously cry over a collapsed batting lineup. And if you ever need someone to write about cricket with heart, humor and an eye for detail, well, she trained for that too.
