Samson unfazed by conditions before Asian Games semi-final

India opener Sanju Samson is unaffected by the unknown conditions in Nagoya as his team prepare for the Asian Games semi-final against Sri Lanka on Thursday. 

India won gold in men's cricket at the 2022 Asian Games and will be keen to repeat that feat to add to their trophy spree in the T20I format, having won the ICC Men's T20 World Cup successively in 2024 and 2026 since. 

But conditions in Nagoya remain an unknown quantity, which India will have to be prepared for. Shreyas Iyer's team were given a scare by Japan in the only T20I the team has played on Japanese soil in the build-up to the Asian Games after the game was reduced to five overs each.

Samson, though, isn't putting too much emphasis on the conditions in Nagoya. 

"Yes, conditions are a bit different," Samson said during the pre-match press conference ahead of the semi-final against Sri Lanka. 

"We have never played a game here in Nagoya. Most of us are playing here for the first time. There must be a lot of unknown factors, and it goes for the other team as well."

"So both the teams are coming here fresh, and we don't know the conditions until we go out there and play a proper game of cricket, so that's where the fun is, that's where any team can compete. We are very much excited to play a good game of cricket here," he added.

India advanced to the last four by virtue of their higher ranking after their quarter-final against Afghanistan was abandoned without a ball being bowled. 

Rain has dominated proceedings in Japan, so with all four quarter-finals being washed out without a ball being bowled, a sunny day on Wednesday has provided hope that we would see some action in Nagoya on Thursday. 

The opener also revealed that the team has been trying to stay focused with some activities indoors so that they are ready to go when the weather allows room for some cricket. 

"We had some good time. We have been doing some team activities. We were trying to practise every day. We were training and conditioning in the gym every day; we were spending time together, talking cricket and talking combinations," Samson said. 

"We are having constant meetings to switch on the players when it's required.

"So, these are the times when we need to be a bit more aware that we need to switch on and suddenly play a big semi-final. Luckily, we have got a good sunny day today to practice and experience whatever we need to do tomorrow," he added.

Virat Kohli became just the second batter to score 15,000 ODI runs after his century against West Indies in the first ODI. Samson hailed the great as an inspiration for his peers. 

"Very fortunate to have someone like him," Samson said. 

"I think whenever he scores runs, whenever he turns out to practice, turns out to play a game of cricket for our country, it's a great inspiration for people like us in the game, in the Indian national team.

"Everyone playing alongside him definitely benefits from the way he puts on performances. So, I am very happy," Samson concluded.