Sanju Samson was feeling the heat, and it was evident even before a ball was bowled in India's chase against New Zealand in the fourth T20I in Visakhapatnam.
Samson usually takes first strike for India. Of the 21 times he had opened in T20Is before Wednesday, he had faced the first ball on 18 occasions. But here, when he and Abhishek Sharma walked out to bat, Samson stood at the non-striker's end, something he had last done in July 2024.
Before the New Zealand series began, he was understood to be India's first-choice wicketkeeper-batter for the T20 World Cup. But after just three games, his place was in jeopardy. Samson made 10, 6 and 0 in those outings, and Ishan Kishan, his back-up, smashed 76 off 32 in the second T20I and 28 off 13 in the next.
In Tilak Varma's continued absence, the two were set for another face-off in Visakhapatnam. But Kishan was ruled out with a niggle he had picked up during the third T20I. So Samson had an extra opportunity.
With that came extra pressure too. New Zealand had set India a target of 216 - they had never chased down these many before. Moreover, with the team management replacing Kishan with Arshdeep Singh, they were a batter short.
The pressure multiplied when Abhishek, arguably the most dangerous T20I batter in the world at the moment, was out for a first-ball duck. A big knock from Samson would have quelled the doubts over his form and place in the XI. But he could score only 24 off 15 balls in an innings that did not ooze much confidence.
The first ball he faced, from Jacob Duffy, was almost a yorker, which he played safely on the leg side. Two balls later, Duffy bowled another full delivery, this time well outside off. But even before the ball had been released, Samson had hopped back deep in his crease.
Batters often use such tactics to manufacture a desired length or mess with a bowler's mind, but in Samson's case, it is his default trigger movement.
He did come out of his crease on a couple of occasions and hit two fours in three balls off Matt Henry, but predominantly, he went back. So far back that his front foot often ended well behind the popping crease.
That is how he was dismissed in the third T20I. Facing his first ball, from Henry, he went deep in his crease and towards the leg side, almost exposing his stumps. When the ball pitched around good length, he tried to come forward but played all around it and was bowled.
His dismissal in the first T20I wasn't too different. That time, he had gone deep to a full delivery from Kyle Jamieson, which meant when he flicked it, the ball hit high on the bat and went towards short midwicket for an easy catch.
In Visakhapatnam, he survived against the seamers but Mitchell Santner made sure he didn't last long. Samson went back again, and since he was already standing outside the leg stump, the wicket was exposed. The ball pitched around a good length, held its line, beat the outside edge and clattered into the middle pole. The disappointment on Samson's face when he dragged himself off the field showed that he knew he had fluffed another opportunity.
If Samson loses his place in the XI, it will sting beyond his lean run. He had made the opening slot his own by scoring three hundreds in five innings towards the end of 2024. But before the 2025 Asia Cup, Shubman Gill was brought in to open with Abhishek. Samson was pushed down the order. As he was adjusting to his new role, those in power realised the Gill experiment was not working and asked Samson to open again. Such frequent change is the last thing a batter wants in this volatile format.
Samson was part of India's squad when they won the 2024 T20 World Cup. But with Rishabh Pant being the preferred wicketkeeper, he did not play a single match. He would not like to be on the bench again this time. But with just one T20I and a warm-up game left before the World Cup, he is running out of time and might just have to.