When I started playing, friends in TN, Karnataka looked at Kerala cricket with contempt: Sanju

Sanju Samson did not hide his feelings when asked about not being part of Kerala's historic Ranji Trophy campaign last season that culminated in a maiden final.

The star wicketkeeper batter, who captains Kerala, was a huge miss for his state side for the majority of the last Ranji season due to various reasons.

"I was disappointed to miss the semifinals... but I won't miss the next Ranji Trophy final," Sanju said during the launch of the second season of Kerala Cricket League (KCL) T20 in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.

Sanju played one match for Kerala last season, a rain-hit draw against Karnataka at Alur in the third week of October. He missed the remainder of the season due to commitments with the national team and later due to an injury. In between, he also had a falling out with the Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) higher-ups in connection with missing a pre-season training camp.

Kerala were brave throughout the campaign and did not seem to miss Sanju. They finished as runners-up to Vidarbha in the final played at Nagpur in February. Sanju later said how much he had wished for Kerala to be crowned champions.

Sanju said the Indian dressing room was in awe of the talent in Kerala cricket.

'They used to look down upon us'
The 30-year-old said he was proud of the long strides made by Kerala cricket since he began with the state team as a teenager. "When I started playing, our friends in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka used to look at Kerala cricket with contempt," Sanju said.

"I'm not kidding. They were like, 'ok, it is a four-dayer, let's finish the match in two days and return on the third day'. That is how it was before and we lost several matches. It hurt a lot.

"Back then, we used to wish that one day we would beat them and become Ranji Trophy champions. All those who played with me in the last 15 years have felt it, so becoming runners-up was huge.

"But we have one step further to go, and become Ranji Trophy champions. I won't miss the next Ranji Trophy final," Sanju said.