Rajasthan Royals batsman Sanju Samson scored the first century of IPL 2019 against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Friday.
The right-hander reached the landmark by smashing a boundary off Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the third ball of the 20th over.
Samson reached the three-figure mark in 54 balls; he remained unbeaten on 102 off 55.
This is Samson’s second IPL ton, the first — 102 off 63 balls — came in Delhi Daredevils colours in 2017. The 24-year-old, however, could not better his previous best.
"It feels good to score an IPL hundred. This is just the start of the tournament and I have to keep grounded and do what the team wants. The pitch was a bit slow to start with, but with time it got easy. I think we have set a good target with our bowling line-up," he said in the first innings break.
Samson's blitzkrieg knock was laced with 10 fours and four sixes.
He took on seasoned India pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the 18th over smashing him for 24 runs — four fours and a six.
A consistent performer in the IPL, Samson has made only one international appearance for India — a T20I against Zimbabwe in Harare in 2015. It's a coincidence that Royals skipper Ajinkya Rahane was leading India in that series.
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