Sanju Samson took off in a strong way but could not hold the momentum and was dismissed after facing only 8 deliveries. Gary Kirsten, Namibia mentor and team consultant, standing in the dugout, burst out of laughter as soon as Sanju Samson headed back to the dressing room.
In the absence of the regular opener Abhishek Sharma, the Indian team management has to trust Samson for the match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. After smashing three sixes and a four in seven deliveries, he was dismissed cheaply on the eighth ball. It was a pure soft dismissal. Might be a planned synchronization by Namibia.
Sanju Samson produced a short-lived fire
After being displaced for a couple of maximums and a boundary, Ben Shikongo delivered a slower delivery on the pads of the right-handed batter. Samson played a half-hearted lofted flick, which got the elevation but not the required distance to clear the rope.
Louren Steenkamp, at the deep mid-wicket, covered little distance and took a running catch to dismiss the experienced Indian opener. Samson lost his wicket for a quick 22 off 8. The brief, power-packed knock might have helped Team India to get a perfect start, but not enough to justify the credibility of the Kerala-born.
Gary Kirsten couldn’t hold his joy to see Sanju Samson walking back
During the India vs USA match, the United States implemented their plan perfectly to get rid of Abhishek Sharma. USA put a fielder on the square of the leg, where the left-handed batter delivered the ball, and walked away with a golden duck. The soft dismissal of Sanju Samson also might be a well-rehearsed arrangement under the observation of Gary Kirsten and Co.
— Nihari Korma (@NihariVsKorma) February 12, 2026
The camera went on to the Namibia dugout while Samson was heading back to the pavilion. While the Namibia dugout was flooding with joy, Kirsten, 58, was trying to maintain a stoic nature but failed brutally as he burst out of joy. From his reaction it is assumed that the dismissal of Sanju was a planned action rather than a fluke.
It was a golden opportunity for Samson to prove his mettle on the grade stage. Before the T20 World Cup 2026, when India was engaging with New Zealand for a 5-match T20I series, he was the first choice opener along with Sharma for the team. Due to a long standing bad patch, the management dropped Samson from the playing eleven.
Summary of the first innings
Though, Samson’s departure did not harm the Men in Blue in a broad way because of Ishan Kishan, who played a standout 61-run knock with six 4s and five 6s against 24 balls only. Namibia could have also produced some formulas to stop the left-handed batter in their war room, which did not work properly on the field.
With Ishan Kishan’s blistering 61, India registered 209/9 in the first innings. Hardik Pandya also did his job well, scoring 52 off 28 with eight boundaries, including 4 fours and 4 sixes.
Read More: Not even MS Dhoni could do it: Ishan Kishan creates history with whirlwind knock against Namibia
