Pune: Former India coach Ravi Shastri has said that Sanju Samson, the captain of the Rajasthan Royals, has the potential to conquer any stadium with the largest boundaries in the world. Shastri’s remarks came in the wake of Sanju’s stunning performance against Rajasthan against Sunrisers in the first match of the 15th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Sanju smashed 55 off 27 balls with three fours and five sixes against the Sunrisers. Rajasthan: Sanju won the toss and elected to field.
‘Once again Sanju Samson has shown great batting. His shot selection was impressive. Realizing that the ball was not getting a significant turn, Sanju often hit a straight boundary. Sanju finds runs by shifting to the correct position and taking advantage of the pace of the ball. “Sanju has the strength to conquer the stadium with the biggest boundaries in the world,” Shastri said.
‘Sanju is a player who loves to bat in Pune. He has also scored a century in the IPL at the same venue. He is still in good form. Had Sanju been at the crease for the remaining five overs, Rajasthan would have scored at least 230 runs. Batting first, Sanju made a great partnership with Devdutt Padikkal, ”said Shastri.
Malayalee players smashed
Earlier in the day, Rajasthan Royals beat Hyderabad by 61 runs in a thrilling IPL match. Batting first, the Royals scored 210 in 20 overs with captain Sanju Samson (55 off 27 balls) and Devdutt Padikkal (41 off 29 balls) playing their 100th match for Rajasthan in the IPL. Hyderabad’s reply ended with 149 runs. Right-handed batsman Sanju and left-handed batsman Devdut were the backbone of Rajasthan’s 73-run stand for the third wicket. Yusvendra Chehal took 3 wickets and Trent Bolt and Prasidh Krishna took 2 wickets each for Rajasthan.
Rajasthan won the toss and elected to bat, beating Hyderabad by 211 runs. After losing skipper Kane Williamson (2), Abhishek Sharma (9), Rahul Tripathi (0) and Nicholas Puran (0), Hyderabad’s defeat was lessened by the resistance of Aidan Markram (57 not out) and Washington Sunder (40).
Earlier, English batsman Jose Buttler (35 off 28 balls) started the innings for Rajasthan. Butler’s first wicket fell to fast bowler Umran Malik, who scored just one run in Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s first over and Romario Shepard’s five in the second over. Rajasthan were bowled out for 21 in the fourth over by Umran. Butler hit three fours and six sixes before being dismissed in the first ball of the 9th over. Butler also became the first English batsman to score 2000 runs in the IPL. Butler and Yashaswi Jaiswal (20) put on 58 for the first wicket.
The Sanju-Devdat partnership started after both the openers were out. When Sanju unleashed the attack with 5 sixes and 3 fours, Devdutt started slowly and then caught fire. Shimron Hetmeyer (32 off 13 balls) also hit the Sunrisers’ hopes of retaining Rajasthan after the two were out. Despite conceding 39 runs in 4 overs, it was Umran Malik who took the crucial wickets of Butler and Devdat. T Natarajan also took 2 wickets. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who took Sanju’s crucial wicket, conceded just 29 runs in 4 overs.
English Summary: “Has Power To Clear Any Ground In The World,” Says Ravi Shastri On Sanju Samson
