Ranji Trophy: Sanju Samson slams valiant 54 vs Maharashtra
What's the story
Star Kerala batter Sanju Samson scored a half-century against the odds in the ongoing Ranji Trophy opener against Maharashtra in Thiruvananthapuram. Samson scored a quick-fire 54 off 63 balls on Day 3 in an attempt to bail his team out of trouble. This knock came after three of Kerala's top four batters were dismissed for single-digit scores. Here we decode Samson's performance and stats.
Knock
A knock of character from Samson
Responding to Maharashtra's first innings score of 239/10, Samson arrived with the scorecard reading 35/3. He looked in good touch, having played some elegant cover drives and a six over midwicket. Samson stitched a 57-run partnership for the fifth wicket with his captain, Mohammed Azharuddeen (36), as Kerala went past 100. The former eventually fell to left-arm spinner Vicky Ostwal. Kerala were reeling at 132/5 at the time of his dismissal.
Stats
17th FC fifty for Samson
Samson made 54 off 63 balls with the help of five fours and a six. As per ESPNcricinfo, playing his 66th First-Class match, Samson has raced to 3,888 runs at an average of 38-plus (50s: 17, 100s: 11). Notably, Samson is yet to play Test cricket for India. He has appeared in 16 ODIs and 49 T20Is, hammering four tons across formats.
Match summary
Gaikwad leads Maharashtra's innings
Meanwhile, Maharashtra's innings was led by Ruturaj Gaikwad, who scored a brilliant 91. The team was eventually bowled out for 239 runs as Jalaj Saxena (49) missed out on his fifty. For Kerala, pacer M D Nidheesh shone with the ball, taking five wickets in the innings. Kerala have made a poor response with the bat as, besides Samson, none of their top-six batters could even touch the 40-run mark.