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Sanju Samson's fiery knock of 97 not out against the West Indies helped India secure their place in the semi-finals of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup for the sixth time, and the former India cricketer and assistant coach Abhishek Nayar lavished praise on Samson's batting prowess and Jasprit Bumrah's two wickets in an over.
Speaking on Star Sports, the former India assistant coach, Nayar, spoke about how Samson finally got his moment after waiting for so long. He said, "It was an unbelievable innings by Sanju Samson. It has been a rollercoaster ride for him in the last couple of years. He got those centuries in South Africa after scoring so many runs there, then got demoted to number five. We watched him in Australia. He was out of sorts because that was not his natural position. From there, he fought his way back into the Indian side and found a place in the T20 World Cup squad. Then Ishan Kishan replaced him." "He was looking for a spot again. He got just one game in the group stage against Namibia, then finally got a go against Zimbabwe. He got some runs, and then he did this. A special innings of 97 runs. He played very differently from how he has played in the past. It was very measured, controlled and aggressive," Nayar said. Chasing a challenging target of 196 runs, India were reduced to 41/2 within the powerplay. It was a 58-run stand between Samson and Suryakumar Yadav (18), which brought the chase back on track. Then Sanju went on to stitch partnerships with Tilak Varma (27 in 15 balls, with four boundaries and a six), Hardik Pandya (17) and Shivam Dube (8*), taking India to a five-wicket win. Nayar also praised Jasprit Bumrah for changing the game in one over. Bumrah was called back into the attack in the 12th over, and he dismissed first Shimron Hetmyer (27 off 12 balls) and then got rid of the set batter Roston Chase (40 off 25 balls) with a slower delivery. Nayar said, "Jasprit Bumrah is a cheat code. You bring him with the new ball, in the middle overs, or at the death. He never disappoints. He always delivers. The wicket of Shimron Hetmyer set it up for India. Hetmyer was looking very dangerous in these conditions. As a fast bowler, you think yorker or a bouncer. But to bowl a length ball there and get a wicket is very difficult to execute." "Then he bowled a brilliant slow ball to get rid of Roston Chase. That broke the back of the West Indies batting. Both batters were set. To get two set batters in one over just demoralises the opposition. Bumrah was brilliant as ever," he concluded. Bumrah (2/36 in four overs) was India's leading bowler, with Varun Chakaravarthy and Hardik Pandya dropping a spell of 1/40 in four overs each. India halted the West Indies to 195/4 while opting to bowl first. Now, India will face England in the semi-finals at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday. (ANI)
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