Indian opener Sanju Samson played an impressive innings in the first T20I match against South Africa. In the previous T20I match against Bangladesh, he had smashed a quick century, and in Durban, he repeated the feat by scoring another explosive hundred against South Africa. With this achievement, Samson became the first Indian cricketer to score centuries in two consecutive T20I matches, making history for India. He is now the fourth player in the world to hit centuries in two consecutive T20I games, following Gustav McKeon, Rilee Rossouw, and Phil Salt.
During this remarkable innings, wicketkeeper-batsman Samson hit 9 sixes, making him the first Indian wicketkeeper to hit 5 or more sixes in an innings twice. Previously, only Ishan Kishan had managed this once for India, but Samson has now surpassed him. In his last innings, he hit 8 sixes, and in this match, he managed even more. Samson also became the first Indian cricketer to score over 200 runs in two consecutive T20I innings.
Before the three-match T20 series against Bangladesh, Samson was looking to secure his spot in the T20 team. Although his first two matches in the series did not go well, he scored a century in Hyderabad, which was the second-fastest T20I century for India, reaching it in just 40 balls. Against South Africa, he took 47 balls to score another hundred, hitting 7 fours and 9 sixes. He is also the first Indian wicketkeeper to score two centuries in T20I cricket.
Samson reached his half-century in 27 balls, with 3 fours and 5 sixes, marking his third T20I fifty. When this innings turned into a century, his record in T20I cricket became two centuries and two half-centuries. In the India vs South Africa T20 series, Samson now holds the record for the highest score by an Indian batsman, surpassing David Miller’s 106 runs.