Sanju Samson came up with the goods on his captaincy debut for Rajasthan Royals on Monday in Mumbai. The first-time RR skipper could not take the side over the line in a mammoth 222-run chase but became the first to score a century on IPL captaincy debut.
Samson, who replaced Steve Smith (now with Delhi Capitals) at the helm of the franchise, played a calculated innings as he overcame the early loss of a couple of wickets and built his innings well.
Samson hit a breathtaking 63-ball 119 against Punjab Kings. His innings comprised of seven big sixes and 12 boundaries. His knock upstaged the knock of his opposite number, KL Rahul who had hit 91 off 50 balls.
“The second part of my innings was my best IPL performance. I took my time and respected the bowlers, whereas in the first part I was not timing it very well. I took the singles and got into a rhythm and then I started to play my shots in the second half. I enjoy my shots, but I return to the present after playing them,” said Samson when awarded the man of the match.
Despite Samson’s heroics, the Kings won the last-ball thriller by four runs in Wankhede to get their campaign off to a winning start. While PBKS would like to carry the winning momentum forward, the Royals would look to get their first win of the season.
He got to his 100 quicker than we could come up with a copy that did justice to this innings! 😅🔥
Take a bow, Skipper Samson – the 1st 💯 of #VIVOIPL 2021!#IPL2021 #RRvPBKS #RR #RajasthanRoyals #SanjuSamson pic.twitter.com/I9hlufDDqu
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) April 12, 2021