Sanju Samson has responded to uncertainty over his spot as India’s opener in the Asia Cup with a brilliant century in the Kerala Cricket League (KCL). The wicketkeeper batter had batted at number six for the Kochi Blue Tigers against the Alleppey Ripples on August 23 and struggled with the bat.
It looked like Samson was trying to make a case for a middle-order spot since Shubman Gill is expected to be India’s second opener after Abhishek Sharma. But that might have been a situational scenario. Samson was struggling with his fever and had even spent some time in the hospital. Perhaps that was the reason behind his demotion.
Samson scores fastest KCL fifty
Back to his physical best, Samson opened the batting for Kochi Blue Tigers against the Aries Kollam Sailors. Chasing a mammoth 237-run target, the wicketkeeper raced off the blocks. Samson hit three boundaries in the first over, followed by four consecutive ones in the third over.
Samson ended up scoring a 16-ball fifty, reaching the milestone in just 3.5 overs. On his way to his fifty, Samson scored 11 boundaries (10 fours and 1 six). This was the fastest half-century in KCL’s history. The previous record belonged to Abdul Bazith, who got to the milestone in 22 deliveries.
But that was just the start of it all. The target was still far away. Samson knew that he had to continue. He continued to strike at a brisk rate. By the end of the powerplay, he was batting at 77 from just 24 balls, hitting four more boundaries in the 6th over. Biju Narayanan and Ajayaghosh N S stopped the run flow to some extent but Samson was still striking well above 200.
Samson scored 42-ball hundred before Asia Cup
His maiden hundred in the KCL came in the 15th over, from just 42 balls. Of his 100 runs, 82 came from boundaries alone (13 fours and 5 sixes). The required strike rate was around 200 before the start of the 237-run chase, but Samson took just 7 overs (42 balls) to score his century at an strike rate of 238.10.
Samson ended up scoring 121 runs from just 51 balls but couldn’t get the Tigers across the line himself. Luckily for him, his knock didn’t go to waste, as Muhammad Ashik hit a last-ball six to win the match.
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