Kolkata: Sanzhou Samson In his decade-long international T20 career, he has brought warmth to the Indian bench more times than he expected. The Indian opener’s talent was never in doubt, but he didn’t always make the most of the opportunities that came his way.Push boundaries with our YouTube channel. Subscribe now!The 31-year-old got another such opportunity on Sunday at the Eden Park and this time, he showed no shortcomings. Samson’s unbeaten 97-run knock (50b, 12×4, 4×6) has been the backbone of India’s five-match win over the West Indies and has led his side to the semi-finals of the ongoing T20 World Cup.
England follows Suryakumar YadavThese are the last two steps towards their historic title defense. It was only fitting that Samson sealed it with a punch from midfield.On the face of it, the target of 196 may seem daunting, but when the chase is on a flat track and driven by batsmen capable of bowling, it doesn’t seem that challenging. The reason India looked a bit shaky was mainly because Samson was left alone for most of the innings. Samson emerged as the main partner in the 58-run innings with Surya (18). He is more equal with the 42 added by Tilak Varma (27, 15b, 4×4, 1×6). Similar to Hardik Pandya (17) Survivors of nanny.In all these partnerships, Samson was the constant, showcasing his range of shots and bringing plenty of punch in behind. This innings was undoubtedly one of the most memorable, if not the decisive, that Samson had ever played.Earlier, West Indies once again showed their tendency to fall apart just when things seemed to be going well. However, the discovery of this tournament is that they also have batting depth to fight back. When the West Indies innings struggled, Jason Holder and Rolphman Powell fought back.Opening with Shai Hope Roston Chasethey had a reasonable start, if not a flight.The powerplay of 45 with nothing to lose looks like a platform they can build on, certainly with a little help Abhishek SharmaWhen the batsman bowled 14, he conceded a simple chance to Chase near Bumrah. The loss of Hope, who was not as smooth as Chase, and a score of 68 in the ninth over meant West Indies still had the upper hand.For an opener with a powerhouse attack, Hope’s 32 of 33 goals will be disappointing. Chase, 40, is more aggressive; Himron Heitmeyer He made up for the lost ground with a 12-ball haul of 27. However, his innings proved to be a mere cameo and he was narrowly eliminated.That was in Bumrah’s second over and the 12th over of the innings. He bowled Chase in the same over and suddenly the West Indies innings seemed to be falling apart. That’s when Holder and Powell came together to develop a recovery plan. They scored just 35 balls for the fifth wicket in an unbeaten 76. Holder (37*, 22b, 2×4, 3×6) is a lower-ranked asset who continued to depart against South Africa. Powell (34*, 19b, 3×4, 2×6) once again showed that his calm demeanor belies the fiery batsman inside.The duo attacked the Indian bowlers with the best of them Bumrah and Varun Chakravarthy scoring 36 and 40 runs respectively.
| 76 – The 5.5-over spell between Jason Holder and Rovman Powell was West Indies’ first 50-over match for the fifth wicket in T20Is against India, surpassing the 49-over match between Hetmyer and Shai Hope at Lauderhill on August 12, 2023. 12 – Varun Chakravarthy (average 12.33 in seven games) tops the spin bowling charts in this T20 World Cup, beating the 11 wickets each taken by Adil Rashid and Maheesh Theekshana. 199/5 – India recorded their highest number of successful chases in a T20 World Cup, surpassing 176 in four matches against South Africa at Mirpur on April 4, 2014. 97* – Samson’s first fifty in the T20 World Cup was also his first in T20Is against West Indies. His unbeaten knock is the highest by an Indian batsman against the West Indies in the T20 World Cup, surpassing Virat Kohli’s 89 not out on March 31, 2016 at Wankhede. 1 – Samson’s innings is the highest by an Indian batsman in a successful T20 World Cup chase, surpassing Virat Kohli’s two unbeaten runs – against Australia in Mohali on March 27, 2016 and against Pakistan in Melbourne on October 23, 2022. 150 Rovman Powell became the first West Indies batsman to hit 150 sixes in 103 innings in T20Is, surpassing former Windies captain and wicketkeeper Nicholas Pooran’s record of 149 sixes in 97 innings. — Stats: Rajesh Kumar |
