Rajasthan Royals' Sanju Samson feels players need to be tactful to dodge fixers
While the bookies have been known to approach the player with expensive gifts and honey traps, Samson feels that more than honesty it all boils down to the players' smartness in dodging the false glitz that the bookies offer.
In the last eight years, Rajasthan Royals' journey has been filled with controversies and success stories in almost equal measure. While new talents have emerged from the team, some proven performers have fallen prey to the negative advances from the fixing world.
During the 2013 edition, three of its players S. Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan were arrested and later suspended on charges of spot-fixing. In the same year, a youngster named Sanju Samson, then only 18, caught everyone's attention with his fearless batting for the Royals.
While Samson has gone on to become one of the most reliable performers for the Royals, the shadow of fixing hasn't left the team. This year, one of its Mumbai-based players was approached by another state-level player for fixing matches, which was duly reported to the BCCI's ACSU.
While the bookies have been known to approach the player with expensive gifts and honey traps, Samson feels that more than honesty it all boils down to the players' smartness in dodging the false glitz that the bookies offer.
"One can easily manage all these advances by the wrong people, but that player needs to be intelligent enough to talk with them in the right way. If you are smart enough in dealing with them and be tactful, then you can never fall prey to all the things that they offer," Samson told Mail Today.
"I am here to play cricket and I give my maximum attention and energy to it. The IPL is a big tournament and everyone's focus is almost certain to be here. This is good for every player and they should make the most of it with their on-field achievements."
With the fixers mostly targeting young and emerging players for solving their purpose, the presence of a guide becomes crucial. For Samson, it is the Royals mentor Rahul Dravid who has helped him in dealing with both on-field and off-field issues.
"I think I am one of the luckiest players to have the best batsman in the world (Dravid) to mentor me and tell me what is good and what is wrong. He personally looks after all the juniors in the Royals including me and tells us what to do and what not to do," he said.
In fact, the first day Samson came to the trials at Rajasthan Royals, Dravid showed great support to the youngster. That day, he told Samson that the latter had a special talent and if he worked on it, he will be playing for India one day
The 20-year-old Samson is having a decent season so far, scoring 191 runs in 12 matches and is only next to Ajinkya Rahane, Steve Smith and Shane Watson in the Royals' top run-getters' tally. Samson is happy that he has now a bigger role to play for the Royals.
"My role in the team has evolved each and every year. Coming to Rajasthan has been a big boon for me. These two months are the best for me in gaining knowledge about the game. The team management and all the players now know me well and I feel really lucky to be here," he said.
His consistent performance for the Rajasthan Royals over the last two editions also earned Samson his first India call-up last year. He did not get a chance to be in the playing XI - during the ODI series in England, but has not lost hope. "Playing for India is a dream for every player. But those things are not in my control. I want to live and enjoy every day. Thinking too much about the future doesn't take you anywhere. I want to live in the present," Samson said.