CHENNAI: Chennai Super Kings (CSK) bowling coach Eric Simons praised MS Dhoni and Sanju Samson for their calmness and deep understanding of the game, saying Dhoni is among the most composed players he has worked with while Samson reflects a similar unflustered and confident approach, without overdoing preparation.
"I've had the privilege to spend many years playing, being involved with Dhoni, he's one of the calmest cricketers I've ever come across. And Sanju Samson's not far behind that, he just understands the game from that perspective, I've seen no panic, no sense of practising more, doing more, maybe even less," Simons said in the post-match press conference.
After three quiet outings for his new Indian Premier League (IPL) team, Sanju Samson announced his arrival in style with a majestic century against Delhi Capitals (DC) in Chennai on Saturday.
Simons emphasised that a player of Samson's class will inevitably bounce back from poor form. Simons stressed there was never any doubt about Samson's ability, highlighting that top players must trust their skills, stay confident, and remain patient, as success will follow.
"When you've got the class of a player like him, you know it's just temporary if you have a bad run of form and sometimes it's about luck, he got a great delivery from (Nandre) Burger at one game, it's just the way it goes, one ball goes for four to the boundary, he edges one, he gets caught, so there was never any doubt that this was coming and I think the mindset of a cricketer of his stature is important, you've just got to keep trusting him, believing in your quality and certainly he's got that sort of an abundance," Simons added.
Samson made history on Saturday, becoming the first batter in the history of the IPL to score centuries for three different franchises after he brought up his maiden century in CSK.
Samson, after three bad outings, roared back into form with an unbeaten 115* in 56 balls, with 11 fours and four sixes, at a strike rate of 205.36. Out of his four IPL hundreds, Samson has scored two for Rajasthan Royals (in the 2019 and 2021 seasons) and Delhi Capitals (in the 2017 season).
Samson also completed 400 sixes in T20S, becoming the fourth Indian to reach the milestone following Rohit Sharma (554), Virat Kohli (441), and Suryakumar Yadav (442). He now has 401 sixes in the shortest format of the game.
(With inputs from ANI)