Star India National Cricket Team wicketkeeper-batsman and Rajasthan Royals (RR) skipper Sanju Samson has revealed who helped him become a good captain.
Sanju Samson also called for a major rule change in the Indian Premier League (IPL) to ensure that the personal connection and relations of the players are not affected.
Also Read: IPL 2025: Sanju Samson makes big revelation about his relationship with MS Dhoni
Letting him go has been one of the most challenging decisions – Sanju Samson
In an interaction with JioHotstar, Sanju Samson said that Jos Buttler, who is one of his closest friends, shaped him into a good captain at the Rajasthan Royals (RR).
He added that the release of Jos Buttler from the Rajasthan Royals (RR) squad ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction was one of the most challenging decisions he took.
“The IPL gives you the opportunity to lead a team and play at the highest level, and it also allows you to build close friendships. Jos Buttler is one of my closest friends. We played together for seven years. During this time, our batting partnership time itself is so long that we got to know each other so well. He has been like an elder brother to me. Whenever I had a doubt, I would talk to him. When I became captain [in 2021], he was my vice-captain and helped me become a good captain,” Sanju Samson said.
“Letting him go has been one of the most challenging decisions for me. During the England series, I told him over dinner that I was still not over it. If I could change one thing in the IPL, I would change the rule of releasing players every three years. While it has its positives, on a personal level, you lose that connect, that relation you built over years. He was a part of the family. What more can I say?”
Rajasthan Royals preferred Shimron Hetmyer over Jos Buttler
Jos Buttler had a great run with the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as he played for the franchise from 2018 to 2024.
During this time, he was the leading run-getter of RR with 3055 runs in 83 games at an average of 41.84 and a strike rate of 147.79.
However, despite his success, the Rajasthan Royals (RR) released him from the squad ahead of the Indian Premier League 2025 mega auction.
RR retained Sanju Samson (INR 18 crore), Yashasvi Jaiswal (INR 18 crore), Riyan Parag (INR 14 crore), Dhruv Jurel (INR 14 crore), Shimron Hetmyer (INR 11 crore), and Sandeep Sharma (INR 4 crore).
They spent a total of INR 79 crore in retention and preferred Shimron Hetmyer over Jos Buttler, who was roped in by the Gujarat Titans (GT) for a whopping INR 15.75 Crore at the mega auction.
I’m very grateful, as we all are in the franchise, to have Rahul sir back – Sanju Samson
Although Samson will not have the support of Jos Buttler in the IPL 2025, he won’t be under much pressure as he will have the legendary Rahul Dravid in the camp, who has rejoined the Rajasthan Royals as coach.
Talking about Dravid, Samson said that he is very grateful to see the batting great return to RR and expressed his excitement over working with him. He elaborated:
“Rahul sir was the one who spotted me from the trials. He came up to me and said, ‘Can you play for my team?’ From there to now, with me being the captain of the franchise and he coming back – I’m very grateful, as we all are in the franchise, to have Rahul sir back.
“I have played under him [at RR] as a player when he was the captain and I have played under him in the Indian team when he was the coach. But a captain-coach relationship is very special and I’m very much looking forward to learning a lot from him. He is a top-notch professional and makes sure everything is done properly.”
