KOLKATA: Sanju Samson had a forgettable build-up to the T20 World Cup as he struggled for runs forcing the team management to bench him as India started their campaign with a win over USA at the Wankhede Stadium in the first week of February.
With Sanju's last half-century coming against a weaker opponent, Oman way back in September 2025 during the T20 Asia Cup, the Kerala wicketkeeper-batter fell off the radar and was left to serve drinks to his teammates during the tournament.
As luck would have it, destructive opener Abhishek Sharma, who has been key to India's success in the last one year, failed to open his account in the first two matches and then had a severe stomach infection ahead of the Namibia match giving Sanju a chance to return to the playing XI. But once Abhishek came back to the side, Sanju was sidelined again. A duck for the Punjab batter in the next match and a heavy loss against South Africa in the first Super Eights game meant Sanju was back in the reckoning for the next contest against Zimbabwe.
The 31-year-old opened the batting scoring a quickfire 15-ball 24 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, his new home for the upcoming Indian Premier League season. The stint in the middle in Chennai against turned out to be a game-changer for Sanju as he entered the must-win match against West Indies here at the Eden Gardens on Sunday high on confidence.
Chasing a formidable target of 196, India lost Abhishek and Ishan Kishan early but that did not deter Sanju, who scored runs freely ensuring the match remained under the reigning champions’ reach.
He along with captain Suryakumar Yadav added 58 runs for the third wicket and then stitched together a 42-run partnership with Tilak Varma to take the game deep. Varma also departed thanks to a brilliant catch by Shimron Hetmyer at mid-off, off the bowling of Jason Holder.
Sanju, however, stood firm and looked like a man on a mission. The arrival of Hardik Pandya only worked in India's favour as he played a perfect foil to Sanju until that shot to extra cover off Shamar Joseph with India still 17 runs away from the target. That brought in Shivam Dube to the crease. He hit two fours in the over to bring down the equation to 7 off the last six balls.
Deservingly Sanju hit the six off the first ball of the last over to tie the match and hit the next ball for a four to remain unbeaten on 97. As soon as he hit the winnings, he resigned on the ground realising fully what he has done for the team and himself.
"It means the whole world actually to me. I think right from the day I started playing, started dreaming to play for the country, I think this is the day I was waiting for. And I’m very grateful, very thankful. And I’ve always had a very special journey with lots of ups and downs, but I’ve kept on doubting myself, kept on thinking, 'what if, what if, can I make it, can I make it?' But I kept on believing and thanks to the Lord Almighty for actually blessing me today. So I’m very happy. Yeah, I think that’s why I have been playing this format for a very long time," he said post-match
The win also meant India successfully chased their highest-ever target in the tournament. The previous best was 173 runs against South Africa in the 2014 edition.
Earlier, none of the West Indies batters went past fifty but all of them except their captain Shai Hope scored runs with a strike rate of more than 150. That collective aggressive approach meant they posted a defendable total on the scoreboard after being invited to bat by the India captain.
The previous four out of five matches here at the venue before Sunday were won by the teams batting first but India opted to field given the dew factor. "Surface looks good, it's a chasing ground. The wicket will get better and with dew factor, chasing is the better option. Already very wild, crowd is in and hopefully we can give them a good show. Of course, there is tension and nerves. No pressure, no fun. But the mood in the camp is good," Surykumar said after the toss.
His West Indian counterpart Hope sung from the same hymn sheet saying they too would have bowled first. He also went on to add that they need to play consistent cricket as it's a must-win match. As the captain hoped, the team had a steady start with Hope along with his new partner Roston Chase taking the team through power play without any hiccups.
Hope was the first wicket to fall as Varun Chakaravarthy had him after being introduced in the ninth over. The back of length ball spun back to rattle stumps of Hope as he tried to accelerate the run rate. But in-form batter Hetmyer only added to the miseries of Indian bowlers as he slammed Varun for a six and a four apart from picking three singles by cleverly placing the ball at mid-wicket. That over yielded 17 runs. In no time, Hetmyer, the most consistent West Indian batter in the tournament, reached 27 off just 11 balls.
It was then Surykumar, who brought back Jasprit Bumrah, who gave away seven runs from his first over. He could have had Chase in the over if Abhishek Sharma had held that regulation catch at cover. Bumrah reposed the faith put on him by his captain as he bowled a length ball that angled across and Hetmyer nicked it while attempting to swipe it across the line. The batter, unhappy with the decision, reviewed it but to no avail.
Bumrah made it two in the over as he sent back Chase to reduce the opponents to 3/103 inside 12 overs. India could have another one in the next over bowled by Axar Patel but Tilak Varma dropped Sherfane Rutherford in the deep midwicket as the ball popped out of his hands for a six.
Rutherford, however, could not capitalise on the reprieve as Hardik Pandya had him in the 15th over. Former captain Jason Holder then joined forces with Rovman Powell to power the team to a competitive total. The duo added 76 runs from the next 35 balls as Holder and Powell remained unbeaten on 37 and 34 runs respectively.
Brief scores: West Indies: 195/4 in 20 ovs (Chase 40; Jasprit BumraH 2/36) lost to India 199/5 in 19.2 ovs (Samson 97 n.o; Holder 2/38).
