Mumbai: Indian cricketer Sanju Samson has revealed that he was meant to play in the T20 World Cup final. He explained that the management decided to make a change to the team just before the toss, despite having told him to prepare for the final match. Sanju made this revelation during a YouTube interview with sports journalist Vimal Kumar.

Despite being part of India's World Cup squad, Sanju did not get a chance to play in any matches. This tournament was particularly significant as it marked the return of Rishabh Pant, who had been injured in a car accident. Sanju's lack of opportunity is seen as an outcome of a disappointing performance in a warm-up match, where Pant shone and secured his place in the playing eleven for the tournament.

"I had the opportunity to play in the World Cup final. The team management instructed me to be ready, and I prepared accordingly. However, just before the toss, the management decided to stick with the same team that had played the previous matches. It was fine; I was in a mood that nothing could bother me," Sanju said.

Sanju further noted that it was Captain Rohit Sharma who informed him about the last-minute change after he had been told to get ready to play.

"Rohit took me aside and started explaining why such a decision was made. He started saying ‘You know, no?’ in his own style of explaining things. I told him that we should first focus on winning the match and then we can talk later. After he walked away for a minute, he returned, and said ‘I know you must be cursing me in your mind. I feel you aren’t happy. I can sense something was bothering you.’ We then had a brief discussion, during which I told him that as a player, I would have liked to play," Sanju said.

Sanju added that Rohit spent about ten minutes explaining the reason behind his exclusion before such a high-pressure match like the World Cup final. It was only after this conversation that Rohit went for the toss. 

Sanju concluded by saying that Rohit's conduct held a great place in his heart.