IPL 2022: Sanju Samson Thanks Kumar Sangakkara After 27-Ball 55 Blitz During SRH vs RR

Mumbai: Despite the pressures of captaincy, Sanju Samson came up with his best as he smashed a breathtaking 55 off 27 balls against Sunrisers Hyderabad to power Rajasthan Royals to a mammoth 210 for six on Tuesday. Playing the first game of the season, Samson showed no nerves as he hit five sixes and three fours in his 27-ball stay. Thanks to his good show, he was named the man of the match. After the match, Samson credited Director of Cricket Rajasthan Royals, Kumar Sangakkara.

“Leaders like Sangakkara help me a lot. A lot of cricketing brains has gone in to pick the right side. This season we have come in with great dreams. Our owners take great care of us,” said Samson.

He also went on to speak of the wicket and how he had to adjust his game accordingly to shine.

“I think it was a different wicket than what we thought. The wicket was helping the fast bowlers if you hit the typical Test match lengths. No long time goals. Happy to contribute to team’s victory. I worked on my fitness. I chose the right scoring oppurtunities. Tried to spend time in the wicket,” he added.

Chasing 211 to win, SRH top-order batters — Kane Williamson (2), Abhishek Sharma (9), Rahul Tripathi (0), Nicholas Pooran (0) couldn’t do much for Hyderabad. Lower down the order, Aiden Markram (57 off 41), Romario Shepherd (24 off 18) and Washington Sundar (40 off 14) tried hard but it wasn’t enough as Hyderabad were restricted to 149-7 in 20 overs. Yuzvendra Chahal (3/22), Prasidh Krishna (2/16) and Trent Boult (2/23) were the wicket-takers for Rajasthan.

Brief scores: Rajasthan Royals 210/6 in 20 overs (Sanju Samson 55, Devdutt Padikkal 41; Umran Malik 2/39) beat Sunrisers Hyderabad 149/7 in 20 overs(Aiden Markram 57, Washington Sundar 40; Yuzvendra Chahal 3/22) by 61 runs.