Sanju Samson plays a shot during the T20 World Cup Super 8 match against West Indies. (NOT a photo) KOLKATA: Sanju Samson has warmed the Indian benches more often than he would have liked in his 10-year T20 international career. The Indian opener’s talent was never in doubt, he just didn’t always capitalize on the opportunities that came his way.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SIGN UP NOW!Another such opportunity landed the 31-year-old’s way at Eden Gardens on Sunday and this time he was not found wanting. Samson’s superb unbeaten 97 (50b, 12×4, 4×6) formed the backbone of India’s five-wicket win over the West Indies and the drive that took his team to the semi-finals of the ongoing T20 World Cup.
T20 World Cup: Gautam Gambhir on Sanju Samson, Jasprit Bumrah and record chase against West Indies
England are next up for Suryakumar Yadav’s men, the final two steps remaining in their climb to defend their historic title. It was quite apt that Samson sealed it with a strike over half-off.A target of 196 may seem daunting at first glance, but when the chase is on a flat track and driven by batsmen who can deliver, it doesn’t seem so challenging. That India looked a bit turbulent was mainly due to Samson fighting a lone battle for most of the innings. Samson was the dominant partner in a 58-run stand with Surya (18). The 42 he added with Tilak Varma (27, 15b, 4×4, 1×6) was more under equal conditions. Similar to Hardik Pandya (17), who survived guarding.The constant in all these partnerships was Samson, who showed off his range of shots and loaded enough punches behind them. This innings is certainly one of the most memorable, if not defining, that Samson has played.Earlier, West Indies once again showed their tendency to fall apart when things seem to be going perfectly for them. However, the discovery of this tournament is that they also have the batting depth to defend. Jason Holder and Rovman Powell produced this fight when the West Indies innings was in trouble.After opening with Shai Hope and Roston Chase, they had a reasonable start, if not a flyer.An over of 45 without any loss looked like a platform to build on, of course with a bit of help from Abhishek Sharma, who dropped a simple chance from Chase off Bumrah when the batter was on 14. The loss of hope, who was not as fluent as Chase, in the ninth over at 68 meant West Indies were still on top.Hope’s 32 off 33 balls would have been disappointing for an opener who had the advantage of a power play. Chase was much more aggressive on his 40 and Shimron Hetmyer made up some ground with a rocking 12-ball 27. However, his innings proved to be a cameo as he was dropped at the last minute.That was in Bumrah’s second and 12th innings. He accounted for Chase and suddenly the West Indies innings seemed to be falling apart. That’s when Holder and Powell met to plan the recovery. Their unbeaten fifth wicket haul of 76 came off just 35 balls. Holder (37*, 22b, 2×4, 3×6), an asset in the lower order, has continued since his exit against South Africa. Powell (34*, 19b, 3×4, 2×6) showed again that his calm demeanor hides fiery dough.The duo hammered the Indian bowlers, the best of them being Bumrah and Varun Chakravarthy with 36 and 40 respectively. 76 – An unbroken stand between Jason Holder and Rovman Powell from 5.5 overs is West Indies’ first 50+ stand for the fifth wicket against India in T20Is, surpassing the 49 between Hetmyer and Shai Hope at Lauderhill on 12 August 2023.
12 – Varun Chakravarthy (12.33 in seven matches) topped the bowling charts for spinners in this edition of the T20 World Cup as he improved with 11 wickets each taken by Adil Rashid and Maheesh Theekshana.
199/5 – India recorded their most successful chase in a T20 World Cup when they posted 176 for four against South Africa at Mirpur on April 4, 2014.
97* – Samson’s first fifty in a T20 World Cup is also his first against the West Indies in a T20I. His unbeaten knock is the highest by an Indian batsman against West Indies in the T20 World Cup, surpassing Virat Kohli’s 89 not out at the Wankhede on 31 March 2016.
1 – Samson’s innings is the highest by an Indian batsman in a successful T20 World Cup chase, surpassing Virat Kohli’s two unbeaten knocks of 82 – against Australia in Mohali on March 27, 2016 and against Pakistan in Melbourne on October 23, 2022.
150 – Rovman Powell became the first West Indian batsman to hit 150 sixes in 103 innings in a T20I, surpassing former Windies captain and wicketkeeper Nicholas Pooran’s 149 sixes in 97 innings.
—Stats: Rajesh Kumar
