SA vs IND | Twitter hurrahs as Sanju Samson flexes muscles following maiden India ton eight years after debut

Despite a quickfire start, India found themselves in deep trouble on a difficult Paarl deck offering uneven bounce after both openers departed within the powerplay to leave the visitors reeling at 49/2, with Sanju Samson and KL Rahul at the crease. Even though the Indian skipper tried to steer the ship to safer waters with a half-century stand, a bizarre dismissal for 21 meant the onus once again lay on Samson to prove his credentials in challenging conditions. The 29-year-old has been a household name for years after repeatedly showcasing his pedigree in the IPL which earned him a T20I cap in July 2015 but a lack of opportunities and big performances on the international circuit since have left him perpetually on the fringes of the Indian side. The deciding ODI against the Proteas offered Samson the opportunity to flip the script and he pounced on it with both hands.

The right-hander cautiously made his way to 50 off 66 balls, striking four boundaries, and with young rookie Tilak Varma struggling to buy a run at the other end, Samson made sure to keep the scoreboard ticking. He stepped on the accelerator anytime the pressure was beginning to build during a lull and eventually got to the magical three-figure mark on the last ball of the 44th over with a single off Keshav Maharaj. While the Indian dugout rose as one to laud the achievement that was a long time coming, Samson purposefully took off his helmet before raising his bat to the cheering Boland Park crowd. However, to add the flavour of his typical showmanship, the batter slowly pushed back his sleeves and flexed his biceps to commemorate the once-in-a-lifetime moment.

Samson eventually departed an over and half later for 108 at an impressive strike rate of 94.73 featuring three maximums and six boundaries, taking his career tally to 510 runs after 14 innings at a brilliant average of 56.66, much to Twitterati's delight.

The century celebration from Sanju Samson. 💪



No.3 Indian batters to score a century against SA in SA



- Virat Kohli (×3)

- Sanju Samson* 

— Oxygen 𝕏 (@imOxYoX18) 

WHat a day for him!

First Century for  in ODIs that too in a series decider 🙏🏻



8th Indian ODI Batter to score a century in South Africa 



Love you  ❤️😭 

— Radoo🌶️ (@Chandan_radoo) 

Hahaha!

 to his haters today: 

— Radoo🌶️ (@Chandan_radoo) 

Very emotional one!

OMMALA 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

chetta what a fucking day,I have no words 😭😭😭

SANJU SAMSON 👑 

— Vedha / Eesu . (@Vedhaviyaas5) 

Big day to be remembered!

Chetta is scoring an Overseas Century which is a dream even for goat captain thala . 

Come outside haters , we need to talk  🐐

— Bateman (@baldaati) 

Sanju Samson huge respect!

New highest score in ODIs for

Sanju Samson 💯 

   

— Ashish Yadav 🇮🇳 (@Ashish_ydv08) 

LOL!

BCCI and Mumbai Lobbyists whenever  plays an important innings like these:

— Radoo🌶️ (@Chandan_radoo) 

Agreed!

Sanju Samson is easily the best player of pull shot in India after Rohit Sharma.✅



Go argue with a wall.   

— Anurag™ (@SamsonCentral) 

Man waited years!

Another WK with overseas century!   

— Shercasm Holmes (@Shercasmed) 

Yes sir!!!

New highest score in ODIs for  🙏🏻 

— Radoo🌶️ (@Chandan_radoo)