Career Timeline of Sanju Samson: Major Achievements and Milestones
From career breakthroughs to professional milestones, explore how Sanju Samson made an impact.
Sanju Viswanath Samson is an Indian international cricketer, a right-handed wicket-keeper-batter who captains Rajasthan Royals in the IPL and Kerala in domestic cricket. He represents India in white-ball formats and was part of the 2024 T20 World Cup-winning team. Making his international debut in 2015, Samson holds records for being the only player to score three T20I centuries in a calendar year (2024), the first Indian wicket-keeper to score a T20I century, and the first Indian to score two consecutive centuries in T20Is.
2007: Member of Kerala U-13 Cricket Team
In 2007, Sanju Samson was a member of the U-13 cricket team of Kerala. He also captained Kerala in the KSCA Inter-State under-13 tournament and bagged the player of the tournament award scoring 973 runs.
2008: Double Century in Vijay Merchant Trophy
In 2008, as a member of the Kerala U-16 team, Sanju Samson scored a double century off 138 balls against Goa in the Vijay Merchant Trophy.
2009: Named in Kolkata Knight Riders Player Pool
In 2009, Sanju Samson was named by Kolkata Knight Riders in its player pool ahead of the Indian Premier League.
2009: Selected for Ranji and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy
In 2009, at the age of 14, Sanju Samson was selected for the Kerala squad to play in the Ranji Trophy, becoming the youngest Kerala cricketer to achieve this. He was also named in the Kerala squad for the 2009–10 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy the same year.
2010: Performance in Cooch Behar Trophy
In the 2010-11 season, Sanju Samson's performance in the Cooch Behar Trophy earned him a spot in the India U-19 team.
October 2011: Twenty20 Debut
On 16 October 2011, Sanju Samson made his Twenty20 debut against Hyderabad in the 2011–12 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
November 2011: First-Class Debut
On 3 November 2011, Sanju Samson made his first-class debut for Kerala against Vidarbha in the 2011–12 Ranji Trophy.
2011: First-Class Debut for Kerala
In 2011, Sanju Samson made his first-class debut for Kerala.
February 2012: List-A Debut
On 23 February 2012, Sanju Samson made his List-A debut against Andhra Pradesh in the 2011-12 Vijay Hazare Trophy season.
June 2012: Played in ACC Under-19 Asia Cup
In June 2012, Sanju Samson played in the ACC Under-19 Asia Cup held in Malaysia.
2012: Signed by Kolkata Knight Riders
In 2012, Sanju Samson was signed by Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of the Indian Premier League but did not get to play and was released ahead of the 2013 season.
2012: Moderate Performance in Vijay Hazare Trophy
In the 2012–13 Vijay Hazare Trophy, Sanju Samson scored moderately, and Kerala reached the semi-finals.
April 2013: IPL Debut and Half-Century
On 14 April 2013, Sanju Samson made his IPL debut for Rajasthan against Kings XI Punjab. In his second match, he scored 63 runs from 41 balls, becoming the then youngest player in IPL to score a half-century.
September 2013: Champions League Twenty20 Debut
On 21 September 2013, Sanju Samson made his Champions League Twenty20 debut for Rajasthan Royals against the Mumbai Indians and scored 54 off 47 balls, becoming the youngest player to score a half-century in CLT20.
2013: Premier League Debut and Emerging Player Award
In 2013, Sanju Samson made his Premier League debut for Rajasthan Royals and won the Emerging Player of the Year award.
2013: Maiden First-Class Century
In the 2012-13 Ranji Trophy, Sanju Samson scored his maiden first-class century against Himachal Pradesh, making 127 runs off 207 balls.
January 2014: Vice-Captain for U-19 Cricket World Cup
In January 2014, BCCI appointed Sanju Samson as vice-captain of team India for the 2014 Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
March 2014: Named in South Zone's Squad for Deodhar Trophy
In March 2014, Sanju Samson was named in South Zone's squad to play in the 2013–14 Deodhar Trophy.
October 2014: Called to Twenty20 Team Against West Indies
In October 2014, Sanju Samson was called to the Twenty20 team to play a solitary T20 against West Indies, but the match was later cancelled.
November 2014: Named in South Zone's squad for Deodhar Trophy
In November 2014, Sanju Samson was named in South Zone's squad to play in the 2014–15 Deodhar Trophy.
December 2014: Named in Probables List for Cricket World Cup
In December 2014, Sanju Samson was named in India's 30-member probables list for the 2015 Cricket World Cup but did not make the final squad.
2014: Retained by Rajasthan Royals
In 2014, Sanju Samson was retained by Rajasthan ahead of the season.
2014: Vice-Captain of U-19 Team
In 2014, Sanju Samson was the vice-captain of the Indian U-19 team for the Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
July 2015: T20I Debut Against Zimbabwe
In July 2015, Sanju Samson was drafted into the Indian squad against Zimbabwe as an injury replacement and made his T20I debut against Zimbabwe at Harare on 19 July 2015. India lost the match.
2015: International Debut
In 2015, Sanju Samson made his international debut in a T20 international match against Zimbabwe.
2015: Appointed Captain of Kerala
In 2015, Sanju Samson was appointed as the captain of Kerala for the 2015–16 Ranji Trophy season, becoming the youngest Kerala player to captain the state in Ranji Trophy at the age of 20.
2016: Manager of Bharat Petroleum
As of 2016, Sanju Samson is working as the manager of Bharat Petroleum, Thiruvananthapuram.
2016: Signed by Delhi Capitals
In 2016, Delhi Capitals signed Sanju Samson after Rajasthan was banned from the competition.
November 2017: Appointed Captain of Board President's XI
In November 2017, Sanju Samson was appointed as the captain of the Board President's XI, replacing an injured Naman Ojha for a tour match against Sri Lanka. He scored a century in the match.
2017: Maiden T20 Century
In 2017, Sanju Samson scored his maiden T20 century against Rising Pune Supergiants during the Indian Premier League.
2017: Leading Run-scorer for Kerala in Ranji Trophy
In 2017, Sanju Samson was the leading run-scorer for Kerala in the 2017–18 Ranji Trophy, with 627 runs. He played a crucial role in a must-win match against Saurashtra, helping his team secure a quarter-final berth.
2018: Returned to Rajasthan Royals
In 2018, Sanju Samson returned to Rajasthan in the IPL auction.
2018: Started Sports Academy
In 2018, Sanju Samson started a sports academy, namely "Six Guns Sports Academy", devoted to cricket and football training for young players in Thiruvananthapuram.
September 2019: Man of the Match Award in India A vs South Africa A Match
In September 2019, Sanju Samson scored 91 runs off 48 balls in the fifth unofficial List-A match between India A and South Africa A and was awarded the man-of-the-match award.
October 2019: Double Century in Vijay Hazare Trophy and National Call-up
In October 2019, Sanju Samson scored a double century in the Vijay Hazare Trophy match between Kerala and Goa. It was the second-fastest double hundred and the fastest by an Indian in the format. This performance earned him a national call-up after four years.
October 2019: Recalled to Indian T20I Squad Against Bangladesh
In October 2019, Sanju Samson was recalled to the Indian side after four years as a part of India's Twenty20 International (T20I) squad for their series against Bangladesh; but was benched in the whole series.
November 2019: Added to Indian T20I Team Against West Indies
In November 2019, Sanju Samson was added to the Indian team for the T20I series against West Indies after an injury to Shikhar Dhawan.
December 2019: Named in T20 Squad Against Sri Lanka
In December 2019, Sanju Samson was named in the Twenty20 squad to play against Sri Lanka. He featured in the third T20I and was dismissed in the second ball, after hitting the first for a sixer.
2019: Double Century in Vijay Hazare Trophy
In 2019, Sanju Samson scored an unbeaten 212 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, marking the sixth time an Indian scored a double-century in List A cricket.
2020: Scored 32-ball 74 and led run chase
During the 2020 season, Sanju Samson scored a 32-ball 74 against Chennai Super Kings and led Rajasthan to the highest successful run chase in IPL history with 85 runs from 42 balls against Kings XI Punjab. He also played his 100th IPL match.
2020: Fifty Runs in the First Match
In 2020 Sanju Samson scored 74(32) against Chennai Super Kings in the first match of the season. He became man of the match.
2020: Appointed Captain of Kerala
In 2020, Sanju Samson was named the captain of Kerala ahead of the 2020–21 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
January 2021: Named Captain of Rajasthan Royals
In January 2021, Sanju Samson was named the captain of Rajasthan Royals ahead of the Indian Premier League. He scored a century in his first match as captain and completed 3000 runs in IPL later in the season.
July 2021: ODI Debut Against Sri Lanka
On 23 July 2021, Sanju Samson made his ODI debut in the third ODI against Sri Lanka.
October 2021: Missed Out on T20 World Cup Squad
In October 2021, Sanju Samson missed out from the Indian squad for the 2021 ICC Men's T20 World Cup due to his poor form in T20s.
November 2021: Retained by Rajasthan Royals
In November 2021, Sanju Samson was retained by Rajasthan Royals ahead of the 2022 Indian Premier League.
2021: Fifty Runs in the First Match
In 2021 Sanju Samson scored 119(63) against Punjab Kings in the first match of the season. He became man of the match.
2021: One Day International Debut
In 2021, Sanju Samson made his One Day International debut against Sri Lanka.
2021: Kerala played Quarter-Finals under his leadership
In 2021-22, under Sanju Samson's leadership, Kerala played the quarter-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
July 2022: Named in ODI Squad Against West Indies and Zimbabwe
In July 2022, Sanju Samson was named in India's ODI squad for their away series against the West Indies and also in India's ODI squad for their series against Zimbabwe. He also scored his maiden ODI half-century in the second match of the series against West Indies.
September 2022: Captain of India A squad against New Zealand A
In September 2022, Sanju Samson was named captain of the India A squad playing a 3 ODI-series against New Zealand A cricket team. India won the series, and Samson was the highest run-getter.
October 2022: Named in India's Squad Against South Africa
In October 2022, Sanju Samson was named in India's squad against South Africa for three ODIs, where he scored an unbeaten 86 runs in the first ODI but was not selected for the 2022 T20 World Cup.
December 2022: Selected for T20I Series Against Sri Lanka
In December 2022, Sanju Samson was selected for the T20I series against Sri Lanka but was later ruled out due to a left knee injury sustained while fielding in the first match, where he scored 5 runs.
2022: Fifty Runs in the First Match
In 2022 Sanju Samson scored 55(27) against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the first match of the season. He became man of the match.
2022: Leading Run-Scorer for Rajasthan and Finals Appearance
In 2022, Sanju Samson surpassed Ajinkya Rahane to become the all-time leading run-scorer for Rajasthan. Rajasthan went on to play the finals and finished as the runners-up under his leadership.
June 2023: Named in ODI and T20I Series for West Indies Tour
In June 2023, Sanju Samson was named in the ODI and T20I series for the West Indies tour, where he scored 51 runs in the third ODI but had a rough T20I series. He was later selected for the T20I away series against Ireland.
November 2023: Selected in India's Squad and Scores Maiden Century
On 30 November 2023, Sanju Samson was selected in India's squad for the 3 match ODI series against South Africa. He scored his maiden hundred in the third ODI of the series, scoring 108 off 114 balls, winning man of the match award as India won the series.
December 2023: Scored his debut ODI century
On 21 December 2023, Sanju Samson scored his debut ODI century in the 3rd ODI of the series against South Africa.
2023: Fifty Runs in the First Match
In 2023 Sanju Samson scored 55(32) against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the first match of the season. He became man of the match.
2023: Captain of Rajasthan Royals
In 2023, Sanju Samson played as captain of Rajasthan Royals and scored 362 runs with 3 half centuries in season and finished 5th on points table.
April 2024: Selected for the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup
On 30 April 2024, Sanju Samson was selected in India's 15 member Squad for the 2024 ICC Men's T20 World Cup to be held in USA and West Indies which they won.
October 2024: Named in India's Squad and Scores Maiden T20I Century
In October 2024, Sanju Samson was named in India's squad for the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh. In the third match of the series, he scored his maiden T20I century, registering 111 runs off 47 balls and contributing to India's victory. During the innings, he set multiple records, including the second-fastest century by an Indian batter in T20Is, the fastest fifty by an Indian wicketkeeper-batter against Bangladesh, and the highest individual score by an Indian batter against Bangladesh in T20Is.
November 2024: Most Centuries in a Calendar Year in T20 Internationals
By scoring his 3rd T20 century against South Africa on 15 November 2024, Sanju became the batsman with most centuries in a calendar year in T20 Internationals, ie, 3.
2024: Fifty Runs in the First Match
In 2024 Sanju Samson scored 82*(52) against Lucknow Super Giants in the first match of the season. He became man of the match.
2024: Rajasthan Royals Season
In 2024, Rajasthan Royals won 8 matches out of their first 9 matches under Sanju Samson's leadership. He individually scored 531 runs out of 16 matches with 5 half centuries, which is considered the best season for him. In this season, Rajasthan Royals ended up the league stage at 3rd on points table, and went on to Qualifier 2 but defeated by Sunrisers Hyderabad by 36 runs.
2024: Member of the T20 World Cup winning team
In 2024, Sanju Samson was a part of the Indian team that won the T20 World Cup.
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