Team India‘s wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson played a stellar innings of 107 off 50 balls, leading the Men in Blue to a commanding 61-run victory over South Africa in the first T20I at Kingsmead in Durban on Friday, November 8.
During his innings, Samson became the joint seventh-fastest Indian batter to reach 7,000 T20 runs, achieving the milestone faster than the legendary MS Dhoni. While Dhoni required 305 innings to accumulate 7,000 T20 runs, Samson reached the landmark in just 269 innings.
Former India batter Robin Uthappa also took 269 innings to achieve the feat. KL Rahul holds the record with 197 innings, followed by Virat Kohli (212), Shikhar Dhawan (246), Suryakumar Yadav (249), Suresh Raina (251), and Rohit Sharma (258).
Samson entered the first T20I against South Africa with 6,941 T20 runs from 268 innings. After his 107-run performance, the right-handed batter now has 7,048 T20 runs.
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Asked to bat first by South Africa in the opening T20I, India posted 202/8, with Samson smashing seven fours and 10 sixes in his 50-ball innings. Tilak Varma added 33 off 18, while captain Suryakumar scored 21 off 17. In their pursuit, South Africa were dismissed for 141 in 17.5 overs, with leg-spinners Varun Chakravarthy and Ravi Bishnoi each taking three wickets.
“At times it works, at times it doesn’t” – Samson on his aggressive batting approach
After being named Player of the Match, Samson expressed that he’s relishing his current form and aims to make the most of it. He also acknowledged that his highly aggressive batting style carries certain risks. The 29-year-old batter was quoted by Cricbuzz as saying:
“Really enjoyed my time in the middle. Playing it well, maximum utilization of my current form you can say. 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.”
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The second T20I of the India vs South Africa series will take place at St George’s Park in Gqeberha on Sunday, November 10.
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