Indian Premier League 2020: Sachin Tendulkar lauds Sanju Samson for ‘clean striking’ in match-winning knock

After his blistering innings of  74 off 32 balls (4x1, 6x9), Rajasthan Royals batsman Sanju Samson has come in for some well deserved appreciation from none other than the legendary, Sachin Tendulkar.

Samson’s rapid-fire innings set the tone for the Royals eventual 16-run victory over MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings. Taking to his official Twitter handle, Tendulkar wrote:

“Clean striking by @IamSanjuSamson. They were all proper cricketing shots and not slogs. Smartly bowled by @NgidiLungi. Short,wide and slow. #CSKvsRR”

Clean striking by @IamSanjuSamson. They were all proper cricketing shots and not slogs. Smartly bowled by @NgidiLungi. Short,wide and slow. #CSKvsRR — Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) September 22, 2020

Being put-in to bat first, Rajasthan Royals reached a mammoth total of 216 against the Chennai Super Kings thanks to an absolute blinder from Samson. Steve Smith (69 off 47 balls; 4x4, 6x4) acted as the sheet anchor for his side and kept one end steady right from the onset.

 The Kerala native, Samson, played his game - see the ball hit the ball. Half-volleys from Piyush Chawla and Ravindra Jadeja only made it easier for Samson. Samson hit 9 sixes in his innings and middled the ball beautifully. Although it looked like a pretty difficult pitch to bat on, Samson relied on pure timing.

The 25-year-old completed his half-century in just 19 balls which completely turned the game around. His 121-run stand for the second wicket with Smith was vital in his side kick-starting their IPL 2020 campaign in emphatic fashion.

If this was not enough – Samson, the wicketkeeper, was instrumental in effecting four dismissals behind the wicket. He took two catches and did two fantastic stumpings of consecutive deliveries to land the final nail in the coffin and capture the victory for Rajasthan. He was deservingly given the man of the match award.