Sanju Samson century, spinners hand India big win in T20I series opener
Player of the Game
Chakravarthy and Bishnoi both took three wickets each, leading their team to a victory by 61 runs.
Sanju Samson marks another T20I century • AFP/Getty Images
India scored 202 runs for the loss of 8 wickets, with Samson contributing a century (107 runs), and defeated South Africa, who managed only 141 runs. Chakravarthy took 3 wickets for 25 runs, while Bishnoi also captured 3 wickets, finishing with figures of 28 runs. As a result, India won the match by a margin of 61 runs.
Sanju Samson achieved his second consecutive T20I century in only his fourth game, breaking records and dampening South Africa's spirits at Kingsmead. His century was the quickest ever by an Indian against South Africa and will go down in history as one of the most explosive performances.
India's runs primarily came from boundaries, with a remarkable total of 17 fours and 13 sixes; notably, Samson contributed seven fours and 10 sixes on his own. He scored a striking 88 out of his 107 runs through boundaries, showcasing exceptional prowess particularly in the square region. From balls hitting the area between point and cover to square leg and mid-wicket, he amassed 69 runs off just 19 balls, while managing only 13 runs behind square. Samson attacked the spinners aggressively, accumulating 58 runs from 27 deliveries faced against Aiden Markram, Keshav Maharaj, and Nqaba Peter together. He also formed two explosive partnerships: 66 runs off 37 balls with his skipper Suryakumar Yadav and 77 runs off 34 balls with Tilak Varma. This gave India's innings a dynamic middle-order momentum that South Africa found challenging to contend with.
They might have believed they had improved their odds when they managed to restrict India's scoring towards the end. South Africa was on the brink of allowing the highest-ever score at Kingsmead and the highest against India. However, after Samson was out in the 17th over, India managed to add 28 runs in just 20 balls but lost four wickets in the process. In the end, they still achieved their fourth-best score against South Africa, which was ultimately far too high for the opposition to chase down.
South Africa struggled throughout their innings, with only three players managing to score over 20 runs and just one partnership exceeding 30 runs. The two leg-spinners, Varun Chakravarthy and Ravi Bishnoi, each took three wickets while giving away 53 runs in their eight overs. This followed the early successes of Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan, highlighting the advantage of a more seasoned Indian bowling attack.
Gerald Coetzee returned to international cricket after a 166-day break, but he looked as if he had never left. In just the fourth over, he was handed the ball and delivered a full ball wide of off-stump that had some impressive bounce. Abhishek Sharma attempted to hit it over mid-off but only succeeded in getting it past Markram, who was positioned in the circle. Markram sprinted back and caught the ball over his shoulder, prompting an enthusiastic celebration from Coetzee, who has made a comeback from a hip injury and a rigorous 12-week fitness program.
The remainder of the over didn't unfold as smoothly. India's skipper, Suryakumar, launched a shot over Coetzee's head for a boundary and then sent another ball over fine leg for six, racking up 10 runs in his first over. Coetzee wrapped up the Powerplay, leaving India at 56 for 1. He made a strong return later in the match when he was brought back to bowl in the final overs, managing to dismiss Hardik Pandya, who was caught at deep point for just 2 runs, and Rinku Singh, who was caught behind with his second-to-last delivery.
Kruger's enduring spell culminated in a wicket.
Patrick Kruger began with what looked like a solid strategy to keep the Indian batsmen under control—a slower ball that forced Suryakumar to reach for it. However, Samson wasn't going to let that throw him off. The next delivery was also slow, and Samson sent it sailing over long-off. In an effort to regain control, Kruger put in extra effort but ended up overstepping. He then delivered a full toss, followed by a wide and a no-ball, accompanied by another wide, all while still having three more balls to bowl. Finally, he managed to bowl a well-placed full delivery outside the off-stump but couldn’t resist going back to slower deliveries to conclude the over. On his 11th ball, he attempted a knuckleball, which Suryakumar hit towards deep square leg, where debutant Andile Simelane was positioned. Simelane, putting any nerves behind him, managed to make his first impact in the match—just in time, as he was introduced as South Africa’s seventh bowler in the 10th over.
Tilak is simply too impressive to overlook.
Tilak smashed the second ball he received, sending it sailing over deep backward square for six, joining in on the boundary-scoring spree. On the very first delivery of Peter's next over, he drove the ball between deep mid-wicket and deep backward square for four runs. He quickly dismantled Kruger's strategy to avoid the shorter leg-side boundary, hitting one shot over backward point and then executing a slog sweep over fine leg. His innings ended when he sent a shot to deep backward square, where Marco Jansen made a impressive catch. Nevertheless, his quick-fire performance provided a crucial boost for India's middle order.
Markram's dry spell continues, and so does South Africa's struggle.
It has been 25 innings and two years since Markram last scored a half-century in T20Is, and his struggle continued in this match, marking his seventh score in single digits. He seemed particularly out of sync when attempting to play a shot through mid-wicket against Arshdeep, prematurely closing the bat, which resulted in a faint edge that was caught by Samson in the very first over. This early dismissal set the tone for a South African innings that never found its footing. Tristan Stubbs and Ryan Rickelton were both dismissed during the Powerplay, leaving South Africa at 49 for 3 by the end of it. Heinrich Klaasen and David Miller did manage to add 42 runs in just over six overs, but once they were separated, the team fell apart. They ended up being bowled out in under 18 overs for their fourth-lowest total against India, resulting in a 61-run defeat in the first match of the series.
Varun eliminates South Africa's top player.
Chakravarthy dismissed two key middle-order batsmen from South Africa within just three deliveries. In his last over, Klaasen attempted to pull a ball that was a bit shorter but ended up directing it right to Axar Patel stationed at long-on. Just two balls later, Miller swung at Chakravarthy's delivery and sent it to Avesh positioned at square leg. As a result, South Africa's score dropped from 79 for 3 to 87 for 5, putting them on the brink of losing.
Firdose Moonda serves as ESPNcricinfo's reporter covering South Africa and women's cricket.
Keshav Maharaj faced Avesh Khan, scoring 5 runs off 9 balls, which included no boundaries. His strike rate was 55.55.
India claimed victory by a margin of 61 runs.
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