Sanju Samson admitted that his eagerness to secure a spot in India’s playing XI for the ICC Men's T20 World Cup led him to overdo things during the preceding T20I series against the New Zealand national cricket team, resulting in a string of low scores.

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The Indian opener struggled in that series as Ishan Kishan initially partnered Abhishek Sharma at the top of the order in the ongoing tournament.

However, the Kerala batter was brought back into the XI to break the sequence of left-handers in the lineup and has since repaid the team management’s faith with two successive half-centuries. His latest knock, a fluent 42-ball 89 against the England national cricket team in the semifinal, proved match-winning.

“I think that phase was very challenging for me,” Samson said ahead of the final.

“I definitely wanted to come in and do what I’m trying to do now, contribute and win games for the country in the World Cup. But during the New Zealand series, I think I was trying a bit too hard because I wanted to make an impact and get into the playing XI.”

Samson, who also smashed an unbeaten 97 against West Indies cricket team in the previous match, said the unpredictable nature of T20 cricket often makes things difficult even for top players.

“T20 cricket can be very funny. Even the best players in the world struggle to score runs in this format,” he said.

The wicketkeeper-batter revealed that returning to basics and shutting out external noise helped him regain form.

“I had to respect the game and go back to my basics. I worked a lot on those things and it paid off,” Samson said.

“When tough times came, the people close to me were very supportive. I shut down my phone and stayed away from social media.

“I’m still not on social media. Less noise and fewer distractions really helped me focus in the right direction. I’m very happy with how things are going now.”

Meanwhile, England captain Harry Brook admitted that dropping Samson early in the innings proved costly.

Brook grassed a catch when Samson was on 15 off the bowling of Jofra Archer.

“Catches win matches, don’t they?” Brook said.

“Unfortunately it didn’t stick in my hands. It’s just one of those things. He went on to play a brilliant innings and arguably won the game for them.”

Brook admitted the missed opportunity lingered in his mind as Samson piled on the runs.

“It’s always in the back of your mind during the game,” he said.

“I kept looking at the scoreboard as he kept adding runs and I thought I’d have to score 80 or 90 tonight to make up for it. It’s not ideal, but it’s happened now.”