Sanju Samson's journey to this point has been anything but a straight line. He was one half of an explosive opening partnership that helped India build towards this title defence. Then he was displaced by a returning Shubman Gill, then reinstated, then usurped again by Ishan Kishan, his place in the XI even when he played feeling perpetually provisional. But when the campaign needed rescuing, when the stakes crystallised into a virtual quarterfinal against West Indies at the Eden Gardens, Samson walked out and refused to be moved. His unbeaten 97 off 50 balls was not merely the highest score by an Indian in a T20 World Cup chase, it powered India to their highest ever successful chase in T20 World Cup history, and in doing so, booked a semifinal date with England. feels a little sad to see him getting replaced with someone else.
West Indies had managed 70 off the final five overs and clawed their way to the brink of 200, daring India to chase the kind of score they hadn't in T20 World Cup history. As it turned out, West Indies, who had hit 163 in 14.3 overs were left to rue what their captain managed from the other 33 balls.
Then Samson decided to take on a Powerplay specialist - left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein - he matches up poorly against, and promptly rewrote the script. A cut for four, a sweep dispatched for six over the boundary off an overcompensated full ball, and then a pull off the back foot set India on course.
Health and Fitness
Financial markets and global economy
31