South Africa Sanju Samson gets his second consecutive T20I century to lead India to an unbeatable 202 over South Africa in the opening Twenty20 International match.
Following India's victory in the T20 World Cup, Sanju Samson was promoted to the position of opener, which seemed to have allowed him to unleash his innate attacking instinct.
With his second straight century, Sanju Samson demonstrated that he has matured. India easily defended this score with the help of their two spinners, Varun Chakravarthy and Ravi Bishnoi.
A pitch that reduced bowlers' margin of error, a short 56-meter boundary on one side, a strong wind from the beach side to factor, and a South African attack that lacked X-factor. For any batsman, the inaugural Twenty20 International at Kingsmead in Durban was an absolute dream. And Sanju Samson took full advantage of the favorable circumstances. The 29-year-old displayed incredible stroke-making skills and became the first Indian player to record consecutive hundreds in Twenty20 Internationals.
The century made sure that India had 202 to defend, which, considering their weaponry, appeared reasonable but not insurmountable. India still had to defeat Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller after powerplay breakthroughs from Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan. Additionally, Varun and Bishnoi each took two wickets in the next two overs (11 and 12), ending the pursuit as India prevailed by 61 runs. The game was under India's control when the two spinners combined for six wickets while giving up just 53 runs in eight overs.
Earlier, Samson scored 107 off only 50 deliveries on Friday, following a captivating 47-ball 111 against Bangladesh in the previous Twenty20 International India match. Samson now seems completely settled after a tumultuous start-stop international career that started in 2015 and saw him play 34 games in the shortest format.
After India won the T20 World Cup, Samson was promoted to an opening position, which seemed to have allowed him to unleash his innate attacking instinct. Samson's position in the T20I lineup has now been solidified after he started with consecutive zeros in Sri Lanka.
It was not all bad news for the bowlers, even if the conditions were stacked heavily in the batsmen's favor. There was a lot to gain if they were disciplined and creative with their variations, particularly with lengths, as Gerald Coetzee and Marco Jansen demonstrated in the final four overs. India was reduced from a formidable 175/4 to 202/8 thanks to the two pacers' deft change of pace, well-executed back-of-length deliveries, and slow short deliveries, which allowed them to concede only 27 runs in the final four overs and claim four wickets. Arshdeep Singh was positioned to bat at No. 8 due to the lack of batting depth, therefore it was admirable that India didn't abandon their recently discovered strategy in the format.
Samson Power.
India required one of their top order batters to bat long and big in order to reach a total of more than 200 on this wicket and to account for South Africa's batting power. And Samson did both by himself, making sure that the run-rate remained above 10 an over as long as he was in the middle. Despite its lack of success, South Africa's powerplay strategy made sense given the odds against them. South Africa was ready to use the spinners in the powerplay when India's left-right combo was packed the batting order. They kept Jansen and Coetzee for the back because of fielding limits and the fact that India would undoubtedly come strong.
Without any delay, Samson released his arms. He greeted Keshav Maharaj with a boundary and a six after locating Aiden Markram's boundary. Anything pitched up or given some air would be regarded with complete contempt and put straight in the V as part of Samson's straightforward strategy against the spinners, notably the leg-spinner Nqabayomzi Peter. Samson would drop back in a fraction and bowl it with all his strength over mid-wicket if they made a length error and bowled it just short. Peter alone fed four of the spinners, which accounted for six of his ten shots over the boundary.
Except for Andile Simelane, the seamers were not liberal with their full deliveries. However, this is when Samson demonstrated his uniqueness: Simelane's lofted cover drive and a few of Jansen's pick-up shots were pure delight. The seamer's length was frequently agitated by Samson's last-minute shuffle, in which he would dive deep within the crease, thanks to his excellent hand-eye coordination. He was forced to get below the ball and obtain sufficient elevation as a result.
South Africa was left vulnerable by Samson and Suryakumar Yadav, who were the opener's backups when Abhishek Sharma was dismissed in the fourth over. Tilak Varma would make sure the pace didn't just slow down but also increased in the middle overs as he put up a 77-run partnership off just 34 deliveries after leaving in the tenth over following a 66-run partnership of 37. However, just like Surya, the southpaw occasionally had trouble with timing. Samson was unfazed, though, and India's run-rate held firm.
The hosts' attack found it difficult to handle the short boundary on one side throughout the middle overs, and neither Samson nor Varma showed any signs of relief. Particularly lacking in ideas was Patrick Kruger, who became even more predictable in the two overs he put down. Surprisingly, the wide yorkers were missing, and as he rolled a lower one, Varma dropped to his knees and swiped him over square-leg for a six. He had a short-leg side boundary to defend. Although India ultimately lost, the bowlers made sure it wasn't expensive.
Brief Scores.
202/8 India (Sanju Samson 107, Tilak Verma 33, Gerald Coetzee 3/37) bt South Africa (141) (Heinrich Klaasen 25; Varun Chakravarty 3/25, Ravi Bishnoi 3/28)
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