Will Sanju Samson get to play against Zimbabwe?

Thiruvananthapuram: The members of ‘Liji’s Hut’ at the Venganoor-Pallichal road off Vizhinjam sport a stoic look. Even when the ‘Podiyan’ of the house, 20-year-old Sanju Samson returned after a long day from the Kerala Cricket Association office with a neatly sealed cardboard box carrying a few pairs of the Indian jersey No. 16 representing the Indian cricket team to the Zimbabwean tour, there was not much excitement.

The reason being that his parents, Samson Viswanath and Liji did not want to be too excited over his selection to the Indian cricket team because of the previous year’s bitter experience on the England tour when he had to remain as a backup keeper to M. S. Dhoni.

But now, Samson Vishwanath is disappointed that his son’s Rajasthan Royals IPL team has been banned today for two years. Even though Sanju was selected for the England tour in August last year to play 5 ODIs and a T20 match, he could never play for India.

Sanju’s father who has played a significant role in shaping his cricket career told DC that it was a huge disappointment and words could not express it.As a result of Rajasthan Royals being banned, Sanju has also been asked not to talk to the media. He therefore remained tight-lipped and just flashed his shy smile.

Sanju will be leaving for Mumbai on Wednesday provided he gets his visa papers from the KCA office.“Sanju normally does not show any feelings like his three idols (Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid and Saurav Ganguly). When he did not get an opportunity to prove his mettle on the England tour last year, he worked doubly hard. He does not blame anyone and instead consoled me”, said a teary-eyed Samson who quit his job as a constable with the Delhi Police nine years ago to manage the cricket career of his two sons.

Incidentally, the house is soon going to witness a marriage, that of Saly Samson, Sanju’s 22-year-old brother in another 2-3 months to his college sweetheart, Shilpa Babu. Samson rues that his oldest son, who is currently working in the Accountant General’s office, has not smiled ever since he suffered a shoulder injury two years back.