Sanju Samson played a strong innings but could not maintain the rhythm and was out after facing only 8 balls. As Sanju Samson went back to the dressing room, Namibia’s mentor and team advisor Gary Kirsten, standing in the dugout, started laughing loudly.
In the absence of regular opener Abhishek Sharma, the Indian team management will have to rely on Samson for the match to be held at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. After hitting three sixes and a four in seven balls, he was out cheaply on the eighth ball. It was purely a soft dismissal. There may be a planned synchronization by Namibia.
Sanju Samson creates short-lived fire
After dismissing a few maximums and a boundary, Ben Shikongo lofted a slower delivery onto the right-hander’s pads. Samson played a half-hearted high flick, which gave the height but did not get the distance required to clear the rope.
Lauren Steenkamp covered some distance at deep midwicket and took a running catch to dismiss the experienced Indian opener. Samson lost his wicket after scoring 22 runs in 8 balls. The brief, power-packed innings might have helped give Team India a perfect start, but not enough to justify the credibility of the Kerala-born player.
Gary Kirsten couldn’t contain his joy after seeing Sanju Samson walking back
USA executed their plan very well to get rid of Abhishek Sharma during the India vs USA match. USA fielded a fielder at leg square, where the left-hander bowled and walked away with a golden duck. Getting Sanju Samson out easily could also be a well-rehearsed arrangement under the supervision of Gary Kirsten and Co.
– Nihari Korma (@NihariVsKorma) 12 February 2026
When Samson was walking towards the pavilion, the camera moved towards the Namibia dugout. While the Namibian dugout was filling with joy, 58-year-old Kirsten was trying to maintain a calm demeanor but failed miserably as the joy ran out. From his reaction it is believed that Sanju’s dismissal was not a fluke but a planned action.
This was a golden opportunity for Samson to prove his worth at the grade stage. Ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026, when India were playing New Zealand for a 5-match T20I series, he was the first-choice opening batsman for the team along with Sharma. Due to prolonged poor performance, the management dropped Samson from the playing eleven.
first innings summary
However, Samson’s departure did not cause massive damage to the Men in Blue because of Ishan Kishan, who smashed 61 off just 24 balls with the help of six fours and five sixes. Namibia could also have prepared some formulas in its war room to stop the left-handed batsman, who does not work well on the field.
Thanks to Ishan Kishan’s stormy 61 runs, India scored 209/9 runs in the first innings. Hardik Pandya also did his job well and scored 52 runs in 28 balls with the help of eight fours including 4 fours and 4 sixes.
read more: Even MS Dhoni could not do this: Ishan Kishan created history by playing a stormy innings against Namibia