South African cricket great A B de Villiers has heaped praise on Sanju Samson's captaincy in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and expressed hope that one day he could lead India.
"Sanju Samson we all know is an incredible player, but what's his captaincy like? I think the first thing that comes to mind to me is his composure. Calm, relaxed kind of guy. Never seems to be fussed by anything, which is a very good sign as a captain. Strategically I think he's pretty sound. I think he can still improve and will still improve in time as he gets more experience as he spends more time with someone like Jos Buttler, which is a fantastic asset for him, someone to have in his ear all the time. He's got so much to learn there.
"But I think he's got all the credentials to be a wonderful captain. Who knows possibly even one day in a year or two or three's time one of the formats in the India team he could very easily be the captain there and I think it will do his cricket the world of good. If he can stay as captain for long periods of time I think he's going to go places with it," ABD told his former Royal Challengers Bangalore teammate Sachin Baby during an IPL show.
Sanju took Rajasthan Royals to the final of IPL 2022. Royals began their campaign in the ongoing IPL 2023 with a thumping 72-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad before suffering a narrow five-run loss to Punjab Kings in their second match.
Sanju has been in fine form with the bat too. He smashed a 32-ball 55 against SRH and followed it up with a 25-ball 42 against PBKS.
Royals next play Delhi Capitals on Saturday.
