Sanju Samson's late night post after record century against South Africa amazes Jos Buttler, Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan
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India began their four-match T20I series vs South Africa in a dominating note, thrashing the hosts by 61 runs in Durban. Defending a target of 203 runs, India restricted the Proteas to 141 in 17.5 overs, as Varun Chakravarthy and Ravi Bishnoi returned with three-wicket hauls respectively. Meanwhile, Avesh Khan bagged two dismissals.
In the first innings, India posted 202/8 in 20 overs, courtesy of a sizzling ton from opener Sanju Samson. The wicketkeeper-batter smacked 107 runs off 50 balls, packed with seven fours and 10 sixes, at a strike rate of 214.00. Samson also became the first Indian to bag consecutive hundreds in T20Is.
Cricketers hail Sanju Samson
After the match, Samson posted a photo of him on Instagram, where he could be seen celebrating his ton with his bat raised up, and with a serious expression. The post was well-received by fans and his teammates.
England captain Jos Buttler, who was Samson's teammate at RR until IPL 2024, commented with a fire emoticon. Meanwhile, Sarfaraz Khan also hailed Samson with emoticons. Wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel commented, "chettaaa".
The match was Samson's show solely as the rest of India's batters underperformed. India were hoping to post in excess of 220, but lost their balance once South Africa ended Samson and Tilak Varma's partnership, managing only 40 from the last six overs.
Samson started well in the powerplay, and was in total control. The rest of Indian batters supported him as he added some 50-plus stands for the second and third wicket. But once Samson lost his wicket, India lost their tempo and posted 202.
The RR captain was also adjudged as Player of the Match. Speaking after the game, he said, "Really enjoyed my time in the middle. Playing it well, maximum utilisation of my current form you can say. [on what is going right for him] The intent, we have been talking about being aggressive and keeping the team ahead of yourselves. Once you play three-four balls you are looking for the boundary, I'm not thinking much, sometimes it pays off, sometimes it doesn't, happy it worked out well today. [how important was it to start the series well?] It was very crucial, knowing the home advantage South Africa has, they are a gun side and it was important to start the series well. Happy that we started with a win."
