It was celebration time at the Thiruvananthapuram International Airport on Monday afternoon when teenage cricket sensation Sanju V Samson returned home to share the thrills and joys of IPL.
By winning the best young cricketer award at the sixth edition of IPL, the Rajasthan Royals player had saved the day for Kerala which has been rocked by the match-fixing fiasco involving pace bowler S Sreesanth.
Sanju declined to comment on the betting controversy, but expressed joy at being able to rub shoulders with some of the big names in the game.
Though Rajasthan Royals was able to gain only a third position in the tournament, Sanju said he was happy with his team’s performance.
Rajasthan Royals captain Rahul Dravid and team owner Shilpa Shetty provided ample support to the youngster. The memorable innings, of course, he said, was the 63 scored against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Later, something happened that made his day even more unforgettable. Rahul Dravid presented him with a bat!
Sanju said he first heard about the spot-fixing controversy over the television, but declined to comment further saying that he did not have much knowledge about the issue. The foreign players in the team also gave him ample support, Sanju said, and added that he would like to continue playing for Rajasthan Royals in the next IPL season.
Sanju, who lives near the airport at Muttathara, was received at the airport by his father Samson, office-bearers of the Kerala Cricket Association and fans.
Sanju Samson will leave for the Indian Under 19 camp in Bangalore after five days.