Sanju Samson has been one of the great enigmas of Indian cricket, but when it came to the crunch, the wicketkeeper-batter produced the most important knock of his life to muscle India to the semi-final of the T20 World Cup.
In a gripping final Super Eight match of the competition, the experienced right-hander slammed a magnificent unbeaten 97, an innings of absolute authority and undisputed class, to carry India to a five-wicket victory with four deliveries to spare against a spirited West Indies at Eden Gardens on Sunday night.
Put in by Suryakumar Yadav on a terrific batting strip, the two-time former champions piled up 195-4, perhaps no more than par for the course, and must have felt they were in control when India lost Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan inside the first five overs with only 41 on the board.
Suryakumar helped Samson, firing on all cylinders, steady the ship with a stand of 58 and Tilak Varma and Hardik Pandya weighed in with cameos, but amidst mounting tension, it was left to Samson to deliver the killer blows. With seven needed off the last over, he nervelessly smashed Romario Shepherd for a six and a four to seal the deal.
WI’s Jason Holder (left) and Rovman Powell during their unbeaten 76-run stand. Pic/PTI
Earlier on, the new-look West Indian pair of skipper Shai Hope and Roston Chase stitched together 68 for the first wicket. West Indies were setting the base for an explosive finish with a plethora of power-hitters to come by reaching 100 after 11.1 overs when India fought back with ferocity through their ace in the pack, Jasprit Bumrah.
Held back so that he could bowl three of his overs in the second half of the innings, Bumrah dismissed the well-set duo of Hetmyer and Chase in the same over, and when Pandya got rid of Rutherford with the first ball after the second drinks interval, India seemed to have controlled the lashing.
But Jason Holder and Rovman Powell had other ideas. They freed their arms and went after the bowling, riding on a 24-run over from Arshdeep Singh to set the tone for a grandstand finish. Their unbroken alliance of 76 came off just 35 deliveries, but once Samson got going, it was just not enough.
Brief scores
WI 195-4 in 20 overs (Roston Chase 40, J Holder 37*, R Powell 34*, S Hope 32; J Bumrah 2-36) lost to India 199-5 in 19.2 overs (S Samson 97*, T Varma 27; J Holder 2-38, S Joseph 2-42) by five wickets
97*
No. of runs scored by Sanju Samson on Sunday — the highest by an Indian in a run chase in a T20 World Cup
199-5
No. of runs scored by India on Sunday — their highest-ever successful chase in a T20 World Cup
19
No. of sixes smashed by Shimron Hetmyer in the ongoing tournament — the most by any player in a T20 World Cup edition, surpassing Sahibzada Farhan (18)
76
Total number of sixes hit by West Indies in the ongoing tournament — the most by a Full Member side in a T20I series/tournament
68
No. of runs added by Shai Hope and Roston Chase — the first 50-plus opening stand India have conceded in the ongoing T20 World Cup
Three
Suryakumar Yadav becomes the third India skipper to lead the side in 50 or more T20Is after MS Dhoni (73) and Rohit Sharma (62)
Zero
No. of defeats for India in limited overs cricket vs West Indies at Eden Gardens — they have won all eight games here
