|
India wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson opened up about his on-field battle with England pacer Jofra Archer during the ICC Men's T20 World Cup semi-final, saying he had specifically prepared to face the fast bowler after past encounters where Archer had troubled him.
Archer, previously, before this match, had the Indian wicketkeeper-batter thrice in five innings, and Samson scored just 25 runs at a strike rate of 109 in T20I cricket. This time, Samson turned the tables, smashing Archer for 38 in 14 balls, with three fours and four sixes during the semi-final match. Samson played a crucial role in India's thrilling victory over England, producing a commanding knock that helped power the defending champions to a massive total. During the innings, the Kerala batter faced several intense exchanges with Archer, including a moment where he was dropped off the pacer's bowling before later striking boundaries against him. Speaking during the post-match press conference, Samson said Archer's effectiveness in the past had been on his mind ahead of the match, prompting him to prepare carefully for the challenge. "Yeah, I think it was definitely playing in my mind. Last time when we played them in home conditions, in five games we played England, I think Jofra was definitely a very effective bowler at that time. So I had to do some preparation. I had to be a bit more clear in my head how I'm going to face it. And then I think I tried to apply today. So he is definitely a world-class bowler. You need to respect what he does and at the same time you need to be confident as well," Samson said. The Indian batter added that his recent form gave him the confidence needed to counter the England pace spearhead and execute his plans effectively during the semi-final. "I think I was a bit more confident that I just played a really good innings couple of days ago. So I think I need to take that confidence forward and that kind of helped me to tackle the bowlers today," he added. Samson also acknowledged the fearless batting displayed by England's Jacob Bethell, while also backing spinner Varun Chakravarthy for taking up a challenging role with the ball in the powerplay. Bethell produced a sensational counter-attacking knock for his side during their chase against India, putting the Indian bowlers under pressure in a high-scoring contest. Samson said bowling during the powerplay on a batting-friendly wicket was never easy, especially for a spinner. "Okay, yeah, I think first of all it's a very hard job for a spinner to bowl the sixth over in the power play where there is nothing much in the wicket and batsmen are trying to swing and they are trying to get maximum out of that in the power play. So I think credit has to go to Varun to take up that challenge and still be positive and do what he does, actually," Samson said. The wicketkeeper-batter also praised the quality and fearless approach of modern-day batters, pointing out that such attacking intent often makes life difficult for bowlers, particularly on flat surfaces like Wankhede. "So, Bethel and the quality of batters which we have in this international cricket and more than the skill level they have. I think now that the fearless approach has come in, I think the wickets like Wankhede get a bit tough for the bowlers to come and do their job, but it is just a matter of getting a couple of sixes less, hitting. I think that is where we are trying to work on as a unit, and yeah, I think that's what I feel. It's better to be a batsman nowadays," he added. Put to bat first, a fiery knock from Sanju Samson (89* in 42 balls, with eight fours and seven sixes) and cameos from Shivam Dube (43 in 25 balls, with a four and four sixes), Ishan Kishan (39 in 18 balls, with four boundaries), Hardik Pandya (27 in 12 balls, with three fours and two sixes) and Tilak Varma (21 in seven balls, with three sixes) took India to 253/7 in 20 overs. Despite having England down at 95/4, India could not dominate them as Jacob Bethell (105 in 48 balls, with eight fours and seven sixes) and Will Jacks (35 in 20 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes) put a counter-attacking 77-run stand for the fifth wicket. Bethell continued to march on even after Jacks' dismissal and a fiery four-ball cameo of 19 from Jofra Archer took England really close, but not to the finishing line, ending at 246/7. (ANI)
|
