India’s Sanju Samson smashed his maiden international hundred during the third ODI against South Africa at Boland Park in Paarl on Thursday.
Samson reached the three-figure mark off 110 balls in the 44th over of India’s innings. His previous best in the format was an unbeaten 86 against South Africa in Lucknow last year.
The right-hander was eventually dismissed for 108 off 114 balls off the bowling of Lizaad Williams. Since making his ODI debut in 2021, Samson has only played 16 matches in the format.
He has batted at No. 5 and 6, a position he isn’t considered best suited for, in 10 ODI innings though he made his debut at No. 3. On Thursday, Samson was batting at one-drop only for the third time in ODIs and stamped his class with a hundred.
India lost debutant Rajat Patidar in the fifth over after South Africa elected to bowl. Once Sai Sudharsan perished in the eighth over, Samson and Rahul went into a shell trying to consolidate and stem the flow of wickets.
They shared a 52-run alliance that took 68 balls before Rahul was dismissed. Samson then reached his fifty off 66 balls but scored at less than run-a-ball for his next 50 runs.
His 116-run partnership with Tilak Varma fo fourth wicket gave India a good platform to post a competitive total. Tilak scored his maiden ODI half-century after getting off to a slow start.
Though Tilak and Samson perished in quick succession, Rinku Singh’s carnage in the death overs ensured India came close to the 300-run mark.
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