Former India great hails this player as a combination of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli

Following India’s T20 World Cup 2026 triumph, former captain Anil Kumble heaped praise on Sanju Samson, describing his batting as a blend of Rohit Sharma’s aggression and Virat Kohli’s composure. Samson made a remarkable impact after returning to India’s playing XI in the tournament, producing a string of outstanding performances that ultimately earned him the Player of the Tournament award.

Although he spent the early part of the competition on the sidelines, Samson seized his opportunity in the knockout rounds, delivering three successive half-centuries and playing a crucial role in India’s successful title campaign.

His impressive run began with a blistering unbeaten 97 against the West Indies during the Super 8 stage in Kolkata. He then followed it up with identical scores of 89 in both the semi-final and the final. With those innings, Samson became only the second Indian after Virat Kohli to score fifties in both the semi-final and final of the same T20 World Cup. He also set a new benchmark for the highest individual score in a T20 World Cup final.

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Across five innings in the tournament, Samson piled up 321 runs, surpassing Kohli’s record for the most runs scored by an Indian in a single edition of the T20 World Cup.

Reflecting on Samson’s batting approach, Kumble said the wicketkeeper-batter showed Kohli-like maturity during critical phases while also displaying Rohit Sharma-style aggression when accelerating the scoring, particularly in the powerplay. According to Kumble, Samson’s ability to combine calculated batting with attacking intent made him a perfect balance of the two Indian greats.