Sanju Samson. (Source – Getty Images)
The first T20I of the ongoing series between South Africa and India ended in ecstasy for the visitors. Proteas and India took on each other in the first T20I at Kingsmead in Durban on Friday, November 8. Batting first, the Indian team managed to post 202 runs in the first innings and bundled out the hosts for 141 in the second innings.
Registering a 61-run victory, India gained the lead in the series and will hope to put in another good showing in the second T20I as well. The first game of the series belonged to star India batter Sanju Samson. Opening the innings for the Men in Blue, Samson scored 107 runs in 50 deliveries, continuing his brilliant run of form in the format.
With his century, Samson beat former India skipper MS Dhoni to reach a massive milestone. Through his 107-run knock, Samson became the joint seventh fastest India batter to complete 7000 runs in T20s, and he achieved the feat quicker than MS Dhoni.
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It is worth noting that MS Dhoni took 305 innings to complete 7000 T20 runs, whereas Samson got to the landmark in just 269 innings. Former India cricketer Robin Uthappa is tied with Samson with 269 innings, with KL Rahul topping the list as the ace batter completed 7000 T20 runs in 197 innings.
Really enjoyed my time in the middle: Samson
After the first T20I clash against South Africa, Sanju Samson took center stage and talked about his knock from the game. The star batter reflected on his aggressive approach and revealed that he enjoyed his time batting in the game.
“Really enjoyed my time in the middle. Playing it well, maximum utilization of my current form you can say. The intent, we have been talking about being aggressive and keeping the team ahead of yourselves. Once you play three-four balls you are looking for the boundary, I’m not thinking much; sometimes it pays off; sometimes it doesn’t, happy it worked out well today,” Samson was quoted as saying by Sportskeeda.