Cricketer Sanju Sampson got married to his long-time girlfriend Charulatha in a ceremony on Saturday. Sanju and Charulatha were college classmates at Mar Ivanios College in Thiruvananthapuram and made the match official after a courtship of five years. The couple got married in a private ceremony attended by close family and friends.

Posting a picture on Facebook on September 9, Sanju revealed how he and Charulatha had begun their relationship with a casual message he sent to her in 2013.

“11:11 pm on 22nd August 2013 it was when I sent a Hi to her️. From that day till now,almost 5 years I have waited to put a picture with her,and tell the world that I am in love with this special girl,” Sanju wrote in his post.

“Both were classmates at the Mar Ivanios College here. The marriage has been fixed with the blessings of both the families,” B. Ramesh Kumar had told IANS after the couple announced their wedding.

Charulatha is a native of Thiruvanathapuram and is the daughter of B Ramesh Kumar, chief news editor at Mathrubhumi. Sanju is the son of Samson Vishwanath, who was a former cop with the Delhi police and also a star football player for the police team.

A wicket keeper batsman, Sanju Samson made his Twenty-20 International debut for India against Zimabve in 2015. He made his first-class debut at the age of 17 for Kerala against Vidarbha in 2011. A year later, he was signed up by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) but he did not get a game. However, he made his presence felt in the 2013 edition of the IPL which also won him praise from team captain Rahul Dravid.