India defeated Zimbabwe in the 48th match of the T20 World Cup on February 26 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Asked to bat first, the Men in Blue posted a stunning 256 in their first innings, a total that gave Zimbabwe a tough task from the start.
The batting group received widespread applause, especially the way the opener set the tone. Sanju Samson was named in the starting XI in place of Rinku Singh and attracted a lot of attention before the game. Samson, partnering Abhishek Sharma, made 24 off just 15 balls, ensuring India took full advantage of the power play and captured the early momentum.
After the big win, former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin took to his YouTube channel to do justice to Samson’s performance.
“I will look at it from two aspects. One is Sanju Samson, the boy I know, he has the ability. The second is Samson in the Indian team. This team solved the opening partnership of this game in this World Cup. We had a better start. If Sanju can give me 15-ball 28, 16-ball 30 from here to the final, he will contribute to the team. Maybe he can score runs too, but he has done his job,” Ashwin said.
Ashwin also expressed a more personal wish for the Kerala batsman, hoping he would convert his starts into something substantial as the game progresses.
“For Samson, who I like, I really hope he can persevere and achieve big results. There is no better opportunity than this. I hope he gets off to a good start and also seizes the opportunity. If you work hard for many years to get here, on this platform, catch the plane. Even if you fall, you can at least say you tried. I hope he can finish the World Cup with a hundred per cent, or a match-winning performance, because he has the confidence. He deserves it,” he added.
