Former Indian coach R Sridhar revealed that it was Sanju Samson’s idea rather than a master class with then-head coaches Ravi Shastri or Virat Kohli. Sridhar reveals that this is the moment he sees Samson as captain.
In December 2020, India scored a stunning victory over Australia in his T20I match by using the concussion alternative rule in the most tactical way. Yuzvendra Chahal became the first 3-pointer from the age of 25 to win the International Player of the Match award with a concussion. He replaced Ravindra Jadeja, who scored an unbeaten 44 from 23 points to help India reach 162 goals. An innings break swap helped India win the match, but India’s former coach R Sridhar said it was the brainchild of Sanju Samson, not then-head coach Ravi Shastri or Virat Kohli’s masterclass. Sridhar revealed that this was the moment he saw Samson as captain.
Jadeja faced Australia with a hamstring injury in his T20I in the first of the 2020 series. During the knock, one of Mitchell Stark’s short deliveries hit his helmet.A concussion test had not been performed at this time, but India was concerned about Jadeja’s participation in the rest of the match, so he asked the team to were short of bowlers. In his book Coaching Beyond – My Days with the Indian Cricket Team, Sridhar said that Samson, who sat next to him, traded Jadeja when Shastri and Kohli went ahead with their plans without Jadeja. I made it clear that I had an idea. Using Chahal as a similar exchange via the Concussion exchange reel.
“Before Australia started hunting, I had the field station ready to set up quickly at the end of the innings. Next to me sat Sanju Samson and Mayank Agarwal. Suddenly , Sanju raised his voice. We can get another bowler to replace Jadu,” writes Sridhar in his book.
The ICC agreed, but then Australian head coach Justin Langer was stunned when he saw him chatting with referee David Boone while captain Aaron Finch attended to him. He looked angry.
“I saw a captain in that young man,” he wrote. “I urged him to rush to Ravi and give his opinion.
“Sanju’s quick thinking that led to Chaharu’s inauguration is an incident that will remain with me for the rest of my life. The leader who thinks about the game, Sanju, had a captain. He wasn’t thinking about how to come out, he was thinking about the team. Those are character-revealing moments. “
“This is a classic case of reverse learning. Neither Ravi nor Virat considered this scenario. Sanju summed things up on the fly and was not afraid to share his thoughts. It’s a big win for me,” Sridhar added.