Sanju Samson once again justified Chennai Super Kings’ decision to bring him from Rajasthan Royals. The CSK opener smacked an unbeaten 101 off 54 balls against Mumbai Indians on Thursday, and was his side’s anchor as they reached 207/6 in 20 overs. He joined CSK in a trade after last season, following Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran’s moves to RR.
This was Samson’s second hundred of the season, having hammered an unbeaten 115 off 56 against Delhi Capitals. But he has been on the receiving end of criticism due to his inconsistency. But at the Wankhede Stadium, he was a man on a mission, clobbering 10 fours and six maximums. He was also striking at 184.04, reaching his ton in the final ball of the innings with a six.
Meanwhile, ex-player Aakash Chopra wrote, “No player has scored more than 2 centuries for CSK… This is Sanju’s first season and that’s only half done. He’s already got two. Stylish Samson.”
Irfan Pathan joined in, stating, “Playing at the peak looks like the way Sanju Samson is batting. Playing at the peak = Sanju Samson batting!”
Shikhar Dhawan added, “That was a very composed knock @IamSanjuSamson paced it beautifully and made it count. Deserving hundred”.
Samson had a tough start to this season, managing only 22 runs in his first three innings. His unbeaten 115 against Samson proved to be a wake-up call, and then he got a 48 against Kolkata Knight Riders. Over a week later, he got his ton against MI. It is also the first time in his career that he has managed two tons in a single IPL season.
Against MI, Samson got 83 off 40 balls balls against pace bowling, striking at 207.5. He got 10 fours and five sixes against the pacers. Meanwhile against spinners, he got 18 off 14 deliveries, striking at 128.6 and also a maximum.