Sanju Samson’s wait for his maiden international hundred finally came to an end on Thursday (Dec 21) after he amassed 108 runs against hosts South Africa in Paarl. The ton marked a landmark day for the Rajasthan Royals captain as it took him 16 ODI matches to reach the triple-figure mark. Upon scoring his hundred he had a special celebration to showcase to his fans having been on the receiving end of some criticism in 2023.

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Samson’s unique celebration

On the final ball of the 44th over bowled by Keshav Maharaj, Samson took a single in the long-off region which saw him bring his hundred. He then remove his helmet, took out his powerful right bicep to showcase his hunger for runs. Samson’s unique celebration immediately caught the attention of the fans on the internet as he helped India reach a big total of 296/8 in their 50 overs. He was well supported by Tilak Varma who ended with 52 before getting out. Sanju’s innings consisted of 6 fours and 3 sixes and was striking at a rate of 95.

The match also saw KL Rahul register a unique record after he became the first wicketkeeper-batter in 14 years from India to score 1000 ODI runs. MS Dhoni in 2009 was the last Indian captain to score 1000 runs in the format while being the wicketkeeper.

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India’s innings also saw Rajat Patidar (22) and Rinku Singh (38) play a vital role in India’s big total as they look to bag the ODI series. The series is currently leveled at 1-1 with India winning the first ODI in Johannesburg while hosts South Africa winning the second contest.

Beuran Hendricks was the pick of the bowlers for the Proteas after he ended with figures of 63/3 in his nine overs. Nandre Burger scalped two wickets while Wiaan Mulder and Keshav Maharaj both ended with one wicket each.

At the time of writing South Africa were 84/2 after 17 overs with dangerous Tony de Zorzi batting on 52 while Aiden Markram batting on 5.

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