Sanju Samson was the man of the evening for Team India on March 1 in Kolkata. Riding high on the batter’s unbeaten 97-run knock, Team India chased down a stiff target of 196 with 4 more balls in hand.
Former Pakistan captain Mohammad Hafeez praised the Indian opener in a live Television show named Tapmad. While Hafeez put a focus on the Indian cricket ecosystem, from where the players Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Sanju Samson were produced, Ali sensed the immense talent in Samson.
It was a must-win match for India in the T20 World Cup 2026
The ongoing 2026 T20 World Cup is crucial for Team India, not only because they are the co-host and the defending champions, but also because they are playing the tournament without two legends- Rohit and Virat. Without these two icons, who will be the linchpin of the Men in Blue? That was one of the major questions ahead of the tournament.
India needed to defeat the West Indies to qualify for the Semi-finals, and they did the required task successfully, thanks to Sanju Samson. He remained tall on the crease, after smashing twelve 4s and four 6s, until the winning stroke of the game.
Mohammad Hafeez discussed the Indian cricket infrastructure
“It was because of the system India has. Rohit Sharma Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, and Samson are all products of the system. From a young age, the system helped them to grow. It made me even happier that when you set the standards of the system, when you set the standards of your cricket, you are not dependent on any player”, Mohammad Hafeez explained.
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“The player is dependent and prepares his game and performs at that place. There was no difference between Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Tilak Varma came and Sanju Samson came. So we have to see if there is a right reason for someone’s success because of which they have set the standards of representing their country and according to that, the player is getting ready”, he added in the same statement.
Basit Ali compared Sanju Samson with Virat Kohli
Basit Ali on this YouTube video, compared Sanju Samson with Virat Kohli. The way the opener took on the Caribbean bowlers last night, it reminded the former batter of Virat Kohli.
“You could see a bit of Virat Kohli in his batting — how to pick runs off different bowlers — and he’s got power too… I was making a lot of mental notes thinking, ‘Man, this guy’s a chase master.’ We usually say that about Virat Kohli, but today, Kohli wasn’t even in the match”, Basit Ali opined on his YouTube channel CricketInsight.
With the win over West Indies, Team India storms into the semi-finals of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026. South Africa, and India are the two teams from Group 1 who will play the next phase of the tournament. In the Semi-finals India will face England on Merch 5 in Mumbai.
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