Sanju Samson wasn't always cheerful when he turned up for promotional events for the upcoming Kerala Cricket League (KCL) recently. He was unusually cocky and didn't hesitate to admit it either.

"People say Sanju has changed; he is not as humble as before and is arrogant nowadays. But that arrogance will one day take you to a stage like this," Sanju recently said during a KCL-2 launch event in Thiruvananthapuram.

Sanju chuckled when a leading vernacular news channel probed him about this statement. Then he gave his reasons, which made perfect sense, not just from the point of view of a senior state player, but from the perspective of a proven batter who has been in and out of the Indian team.

"I'm not someone who talks aggressively. But I see a lot of young players struggling to reach the IPL and the Indian team, and from what I understand, they are too humble and too nice.

"But I have realised that one must be more confident and bold to move up, so whenever I get on stage I try to pass my message," Sanju said. The 30-year-old will be part of the second season of KCL after missing the first one. He will play for Kochi Blue Tigers in the season starting August 22.

On Tuesday, Sanju was named in India’s 15-member squad for the Asia Cup in the UAE.

'Gauti likes Sanju's fearlessness'
How much of an influence has India's belligerent head coach Gautam Gambhir been on Sanju's change of approach is not apparent.

But Abhishek Nayar, Gambhir's former assistant at IPL side Kolkata Knight Riders, believes Gambhir likes a peculiar quality in Sanju, which could be seen in the fact that he continues to place trust in the Kerala star despite inconsistent performances.

"In the England series, Jofra Archer had the upper hand over Sanju, getting him with short balls. But after the dismissal, he came back in the next match and hit the first ball for a six. That is the mindset Gauti bhai wants in the team," Nayar said. "That fearlessness and ruthlessness," Nayar added.

Last year was Sanju's best in India colours as he was part of the T20 World Cup-winning side. Sanju also produced some of his best attacking cricket for Team India, scoring three centuries in two months.

Sanju hit consecutive centuries -- 111 against Bangladesh in Hyderabad and 107 against South Africa in Durban and followed it up with an unbeaten 109 against the Proteas in Johannesburg.

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