Will just go and play whenever they select me: Samson

Sanju Samson, one of the most supported cricketers by Indian fans, said that he keeps the ‘higher purpose’ in mind rather than being part of the playing XI every time he is selected for the Indian team. Samson, who was interacting with the media on the sidelines of the Kerala Cricket League (KCL)’s inaugural season’s auctions, has been named the league's icon by the Kerala Cricket Association. 

"I will just go and play whenever they select me. That's it!” Samson was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times. “End of the day, our team is doing well. I am the kind of person who believes in a higher purpose. I just try to take things positively under controllable circumstances and put up the efforts," added the 29-year-old. 

Samson, who debuted for India at the age of 20, has played only 30 T20 Internationals (T20Is) and 16 ODIs to date. Considered as a bundle of talent, more often than not the Kerala cricketer has failed to live up to the billing. In the recent T20I series against Sri Lanka, Sanju got out for consecutive ducks in two innings, joining a rare club of cricketers to score ducks in all games of a series. 

KCL will be contested by six teams i.e. Kochi Blue Tigers, Trivandrum Royals, Thrissur Titans, Kollam Sailors, Calicut Globstars and Alleppey Ripples. It will be held at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram from September 2 to September 18. 

Samson will not be part of the league as he would be looking to impress the electors with the Duleep Trophy outing which is slated to begin on September 5 in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh. In the player auction held in Kochi, 168 players registered, and each team could have picked a maximum of 19 players after having already picked six icon players. 

Read more about the whole process of the auctions and icon players here

MS Akhil was bought for INR 7.4 lakh by the Trivandrum Royals. The 33-year-old Ernakulam batter was the costliest buy of the player’s auction. 

Top 10 costliest players in KCL 2024

MS Akhil (Trivandrum Royals: Rs 7.4 lakh)

Varun Nayanar (Thrissur Titans: Rs 7.2 lakh)

Manu Krishan (Kochi Blue Tigers: Rs 7 lakh)

Salman Nizar (Calicut Globstars: Rs 7 lakh)

M Ajinas (Calicut Globstars: Rs 6.2 lakh)

Krishna Prasad (Alleppey Ripples: Rs 6.2 lakh)

KM Asif (Kollam Sailors: Rs 5.2 lakh)

Vinod Kumar C V (Trivandrum Royals: Rs 5 lakh)

Akshay Chandran (Alleppey Ripples: Rs 5 lakh )

Nikhil M (Calicut Globstars: Rs 4.6 lakh)

If you’ve not downloaded the Cricket.com app yet, you’re missing out — big time. Play Fantasy on Cricket.com NOW! Download the App here.