The 29-year-old India National Cricket Team wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson won the Player of the Match award for his outstanding batting show in the third T20I against the Bangladesh National Cricket Team.
The Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad hosted the third and final T20I of the Bangladesh tour of India 2024. India clinched a 133-run victory in the match to register a clean sweep over the Bangla Tigers.
Sanju Samson Hits Brutal Hundred
Sanju Samson emerged as the best performer in the match as he played the best-ever knock of his T20I career. Samson silenced his critics and showed the immense amount of talent he possesses.
The wicketkeeper-batsman started off aggressively and even smashed the Bangladesh bowler Taskin Ahmed for four consecutive fours. He was not done there as he also smashed Rishad Hossain for 5 sixes in an over to join the elite list of Indians to score 30 or more runs in an over in T20Is.
Sanju Samson completed his fifty off 22 balls and he was in a hurry to reach the century milestone as he slammed his ton in 40 balls. This was the second fastest T20I century by an Indian batter. Also, Samson became the first Indian wicketkeeper-batsman in history to smash a century in T20I cricket.
The Dressing Room Energy And The Boys Really Have Lots Of Happiness For Me – Sanju Samson Said After Winning The Player Of The Match Award
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Sanju Samson said that the players in the dressing room were delighted to see him scoring big. He said:
“The dressing room energy and the boys really have lots of happiness for me. I am very happy. They are happy that I did well.”
Sanju Samson also spoke about dealing with failures and pressure. He said that he has failed a lot in his career, and with the experience, he has learned to deal with things. He elaborated:
“It can get frustrating knowing what you can do out there, and the way I have been batting, I thought that I could have done much better. Those thoughts keep coming in your head. With lot of experience and so many games I have played, I know how to deal with the pressure and failures. I have failed a lot, so I know how to manage my mind accordingly.
“I keep telling myself I just need focus on the process, keep doing my training, keep believing in myself and one day it’ll come soon. Playing for the country, you come in with a lot of pressure. That pressure was there, I wanted to perform and I wanted to show what I am capable of. I kept reminding myself I just need to keep it as basic as possible, focus on one ball at a time, keep playing my shots.”
In the last series I got two ducks and went back to Kerala thinking, “kya hoga bhai,” but they backed me – Sanju Samson
Sanju Samson further thanked the team management for backing him and revealed that he had doubts about his India selection after his failures on the Sri Lanka tour. He also spoke about hitting 5 sixes in the over. Sanju Samson said:
“The dressing room and the leadership group which we have, they keep telling me, “I know what type of talent you have and we back you no matter what,” Not in words, in actions also they’ve shown me.
“In the last series I got two ducks and went back to Kerala thinking, “kya hoga bhai,” but they backed me in this series and I am very happy that I gave something to smile for my captain and coach. (On his victory punch) It has a long story. I have been trying to do something like this (five sixes in an over) from last one year. I was chasing it and it happened today.”
