Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], March 16 (ANI): Indian cricketer and Player of the Tournament of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, Sanju Samson, said he has a 'very old relationship with India head coach Gautam Gambhir'.

Speaking to the media in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday, Samson said, 'Gauti bhai (Gautam Gambhir) and I have a very old relationship. I think I met him when I was in KKR. He was the captain of the team and he also lives in Delhi. I also played in the same academy where he was...so it's a very long relationship and what has happened from there till now, I think cannot be expressed in words.'

Samson amassed 321 runs in five innings in the tournament at an average of 80.25 and a strike rate of 199.37, hitting 27 fours and 24 sixes and ended as the third-highest run-getter in the T20 WC. He also surpassed Virat Kohli's total of 319 runs in the 2014 T20 World Cup edition to have the most runs by an Indian during a single T20 World Cup edition.

The 31-year-old wicketkeeper-batter also revealed that he got a message from the legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar. 'I got a message from Sachin, sir. It was a very emotional message for me,' said Samson.

Team India made history by securing a record-breaking third T20 World Cup title and becoming the first-ever team to defend the title and win it as a home nation following a brilliant 96-run win in the final over New Zealand at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium.

Samson scripted a comeback for ages during the recently-concluded T20 World Cup as he battled inconsistency and benching to emerge as India's leading run-getter in the tournament, delivering clutch performances when it mattered the most, with a string of half-centuries from the virtual quarterfinal against West Indies to the title clash against New Zealand.

Samson stressed that he always wanted to be himself and has always looked at cricket as a team sport.

'I never wanted to be selfless. I've always wanted to be myself. So I bring a lot of different qualities, a lot of strengths, a lot of weaknesses. I like to look at cricket as a team sport. So I think we play to win. And looking at what things have happened in my life lately, I definitely carry a lot of dreams with me. So a lot of youngsters, a lot of people, not even in cricket, a lot of people in different careers, they look at me like their own careers, like their own life,' Samson concluded. (ANI)