Sunday’s virtual quarter-final between India and West Indies will go down in the history books for many reasons, but most particularly for Sanju Samson’s iconic match winning innings. It was India’s highest successful run chase at the T20 World Cup since 173 against South Africa in 2016. When the West Indies set a target of 196 in 20 overs, not many would have fancied India’s chances.
But, Sanju Samson certainly did. The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) man silenced all his critics with a match winning knock in Kolkata. He stood strong from the first ball till the very end and took India over the finish line with a 97 run knock. It was a perfect full circle moment for Samson who has always been trolled for his inconsistency.
He was rightfully awarded the man of the match (MOTM) award for his sensational innings which included twelve fours and four sixes. Samson expressed his thoughts on the game and his performance at the post match presentation and said that his knock means the world to him and he has waited all his life for it.
“It means the whole world to me. Right from the day I started playing, started dreaming of playing for the country, this is the knock I was waiting for. I had a very special journey. I had a lot of ups and downs where I kept doubting myself, thinking will I make it? But I am thankful to the almighty for blessing me today.
He further went on to say that he has learnt a lot from Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma over the years.
“I've been playing this format for many years. I learned from a lot of greats like Kohli, Rohit Sharma, MS Dhoni. That helped with my experience. I've noticed how the greats play, and seeing how they change their game according to situations. Last game we were batting first so I was going from ball one, but this game it was different.
Sanju added that this is one of the greatest days of his life and said, “ I didn't think I would play this special knock, but yeah this is one of the greatest days of my life,”
