Sanju Samson reveals why he didn't believe Rohit Sharma after being dropped before the T20 World Cup 2026 and how self-reflection helped him return as India's leading run-scorer and Player of the Tournament.

Sanju Samson's journey to becoming the Player of the Tournament at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 was anything but straightforward.

Dropped after a forgettable series against New Zealand just days before the World Cup, the Kerala batter admitted he struggled to come to terms with the disappointment and even found it difficult to believe captain Rohit Sharma's words of encouragement.

Rohit, however, remained convinced Samson's opportunity would come.

'Don't be disheartened. It is a long tournament. The opportunity can come at any moment,' Rohit had told him.

Samson confessed that, at the time, he was unconvinced.

'To be honest, I didn't believe him,' Samson said on JioStar.

'Sorry. He might have spoken from his heart or from his experience, but that day I wasn't able to see what he was seeing.

'You could see it on my face. I was a bit off that day.'

India's World Cup campaign began barely two days after the New Zealand series, leaving Samson little time to recover mentally.

'It takes me at least a week to recover. I don't like to bottle things up, so it shows on my face if I'm not feeling 100 per cent,' he said.

The wicketkeeper-batter revealed he spent the next four to five days battling disappointment before deciding to change his outlook.

'I went through that phase for four or five days before getting myself back on track. You know you've failed, so what's next? You're at the bottom, so from there, you can only go up.'

Instead of dwelling on the setback, Samson began rebuilding himself mentally.

'I started working on myself mentally. I started asking myself questions -- why do I play cricket? What's my purpose?

'It was like I was rediscovering myself while the World Cup was going on. And then everything just came back.'

When his chance finally arrived, Samson grabbed it with both hands.

After missing India's opening matches, he forced his way back into the playing XI and finished as India's highest run-scorer in the tournament.

The right-hander amassed 321 runs in five innings at a staggering average of 80.25 and a blistering strike rate of 199.37.

His tally of 24 sixes was the most by any batter in a single edition of the T20 World Cup, earning him the Player of the Tournament award as India lifted the title on home soil.

From doubting his place in the side to becoming the tournament's standout performer, Samson's campaign turned into one of the most remarkable comeback stories in T20 World Cup history.