Smith on Samson knock: All I had to do was give him the strike

Sanju Samson scored 74 off 32 balls, which was studded with nine sixes, in the 16-run win against CSK in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

Published : Sep 23, 2020 00:04 IST

Smith and Samson put on a 121-run partnership off 56 balls for the second wicket.
Smith and Samson put on a 121-run partnership off 56 balls for the second wicket.
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Smith and Samson put on a 121-run partnership off 56 balls for the second wicket.

Rajasthan Royals (RR) skipper Steve Smith heaped praise on Sanju Samson's 'incredible' innings in the win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Tuesday.

Samson scored 74 off 32 balls, which was studded with nine sixes, against CSK at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. Smith said, "Sanju Samson, looked like everything he hit went for six. He was incredible, and all I had to do was give him the strike. This should give him a lot of confidence."

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Jofra Archer struck four successive sixes in the final over of the innings which took RR total to 216. CSK scored 62 runs in the final five overs of the chase but ultimately fell short in a 16-run loss.

"I think the last surge from Jofra was an incredible bit of hitting. MS [Dhoni] smacked a few in the end, and Faf [du Plessis] got going too, but nice to get a W in front of the RRs," said Smith.

Smith, who opened the batting in the absence of Jos Buttler, scored 69 off 47 on his first game back from a concussion. The Aussie said, "Jos is a quality player and we'll see what happens when he comes back. Hard to take the opening slot away from someone like him.

He praised his team's bowling effort, particularly the leg-spin bowlers Shreyas Gopal and Rahul Tewatia.

"It was important for the bowlers to avoid straight hits, and it was important to make him hit the back of a length. The leg-spinners were very good with their lengths - good on them. Shreyas Gopal does what he does pretty well," he said.

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