97 before Sanju Samson in Kolkata: How 15 balls reignited India’s T20 World Cup campaign | Cricket News –

Sanju Samson knelt down and looked up at the sky with gratitude and relief, perhaps thanking the cricket gods in the ‘Garden of Eden’ in Kolkata, after leading India to the T20 World Cup semi-finals with a five-wicket win over West Indies in what was a virtual quarter-final for both teams.India captain Suryakumar Yadav dropped his hat in honor of Sanju, after the right-handed batsman played an unbeaten 97 in his career off 50 balls on Sunday.While Sanju’s 97 will be remembered in Kolkata, his short but important innings against Zimbabwe three days ago brought momentum to India’s T20 World Cup campaign.In the five matches before Sanju returned to the starting XI against Zimbabwe, India had won four but there were obvious concerns in their batting, and everyone could see that.

Top-order problem

India played without Samson in four of those five matches, and their highest opening partnership in those matches was 8 runs. In the only match Sanju played, against Namibia (when Abhishek was out due to illness), Samson and Ishan Kishan had an opening stand of 25 runs in 12 balls.Apart from Ishan’s knocks against Pakistan (77 off 40) and Namibia (61 off 24), India’s top four teams, including Suriya and Tilak Varma, were also having trouble with their batting average in those matches, as the table below shows.

Strike rate of Indian top-order batsmen in first 5 matches of T20 World Cup

The opener did not provide a good start, and the average side struggled to score quickly, posing a double problem for defending champions India. This was largely due to India’s batsmen struggling against spin in the tournament.With six left-handers in the top eight, India essentially invited themselves to be attacked by off-spinners. The opponents were forced by Erasmus, Agasse, Job and Dotus.During the group stage, India faced more unexpected problems than any other team – 102 deliveries.

Of the 13 teams that faced at least six off-spinners, only Nepal (5.25) and Oman (5.42) scored at a slower rate than India’s 6.23 runs per over.India’s problem against erratic bowling was first exposed by Gerhard Erasmus, when the Namibian skipper took four wickets, three of them left-handed, in a group stage match. Pakistan took the cue and their part-time skipper, Salman Ali Agha, took the new ball and dismissed India opener Abhishek Sharma, who hit a duck at mid-on. This trend continued in India’s final group stage match against Netherlands where Aryan Dutt came in from number one. He first bowled Abhishek Sharma for another duck, his third in as many matches in the tournament by then, and then sent his partner Ishan Kishan back to the dugout in the fifth over.

It is worth noting that Abhishek has not previously shown weakness against off-spin; In fact, he has a career strike rate of 171.1 against off-spinners in the powerplay in T20Is.

However, given the nature of the slower pitches in the tournament, compared to the IPL and T20 doubles that India played at home in the last two years, he looked out of his comfort zone against them and fell twice in the three group stage matches.Meanwhile, Abhishek’s opening partner Ishan Kishan is facing trouble against off-spinners. In all T20Is, Kishan has scored against off-spinners at an average of just 76.9 in the first six overs.

That hasn’t changed in the T20 World Cup, despite being at his best; The southpaw registered a strike rate of just 115.8 against off-spin in the Powerplay, his lowest against all types of bowling.In comparison, Sanju Samson has a strike rate of 188.2 against off-spinners in the powerplay in T20Is.

“Abhishek ki jaga khelao demand?”

By the end of the group stage, it was clear that India’s two left-handed openers were facing a tough match against the off-spin.It was clear that South Africa would use their indirect options if Ishaan and Abhishek opened the innings for India in their first encounter in the Super 8. India captain Suryakumar Yadav was asked in the pre-match press conference if India would look to bring back right-hander Sanju Samson against South Africa in the top order to counter the indirect threat? to which he answered, “Matlab Abhishek ki jaga khelao? (Should I play with him instead of Abhishek?)”, “Matlab tilak ki jaga khilao? (You mean instead of tilak?).

“Suryakumar Yadav was seen smiling sarcastically while responding to the journalist as if the suggestion was out of context.But the story repeated itself, as expected, and South Africa captain Aiden Markram himself came to bowl the new ball and dismiss Ishan Kishan off the lead for a duck. India lost the match by 76 runs, leaving them in a do-or-die situation.

How have India’s fortunes changed?

India’s next match was in the Super 8 against Zimbabwe in Chennai, and Sanju Samson returned to the starting XI.

He opened the innings with Abhishek and gave India a quick 48-run opening stand. More importantly, with Sanju in the opener, India have successfully kept the off-spinner off the new ball. By the time Sanju was dismissed in the fourth over, India were 48, and Abhishek Sharma was at the crease. Sanju scored 24 off 15 balls and accomplished the task given to him brilliantly, for which head coach Gautam Gambhir and the support staff praised him after his dismissal. Sanju’s presence did wonders for India in the match. Opener Abhishek Sharma, who had scored just 15 runs earlier in the tournament, including three ducks, returned to form and scored a half-century. India scored 256 runs in the first innings and defeated Zimbabwe by 72 runs. India finally secured a convincing win in the tournament, and a campaign that once seemed on the verge of derailment regained momentum. Sanju Samson converted it with a 15-ball 24-run knock.Against the West Indies on Sunday, India chased down their highest ever score (196) in the history of the Men’s T20 World Cup, bettering the previous record of 173 against South Africa in 2014.Sanju Samson’s score of 97 in the chase was India’s second highest score in a men’s T20 World Cup, behind Suresh Raina’s 101 against South Africa in 2010. It was India’s highest score in a chase in a T20 World Cup, bettering Virat Kohli’s not out against Australia in 2016 and Pakistan in 2022.India captain Suryakumar Yadav, who had doubts just a few days ago “Kiski jaga khilao?”bowed to Samson in appreciation.bad 97 were remembered in Kolkata. He has earned a place in the semi-finals and will rank high among India’s top T20 World Cup batsmen. But it was Samson’s 15-ball 24 against Zimbabwe in Chennai that brought life to India’s T20 World Cup campaign, and they now look like a formidable side to qualify for the semi-finals.