Mumbai, March 5 Praising him as a true generational talent, Sanju Samson dedicated his Player of the Match award to Jasprit Bumrah following the pacer's outstanding performance in India's T20 World Cup semifinal victory over England at a batting-friendly venue here on Thursday.
In a day when every bowler was struggling at the Wankhede Stadium, Bumrah stood out with exceptional figures of 1/33 in four overs, turning the match in India's favor with his impressive performance towards the end.
Samson, who laid the foundation for India's massive total of 253/7 with his 42-ball 89, said the award belonged to Bumrah, without whose magnificent bowling the wicketkeeper-batter wouldn't have been "standing here" in the first place.
"All the credit goes to Bumrah, I think he is a world-class bowler, a true once-in-a-generation player. I think he delivered today. I think this award should actually go to him," Samson said.
"I think if we hadn't bowled like that in the death overs, I don't think I would be standing here. All the credit goes to the bowlers, for how they performed in such tough conditions," Samson said in the post-match presentation.
This was Samson's second successive fifty-plus knock, following his successful performance in the must-win Super Eights game against the West Indies in Kolkata.
"It feels unbelievable to play here. We wanted to achieve a positive result. I knew I was in good form from the last game. I thought I needed to make the most of it. We know that no score is stoppable here, so we wanted to get as many runs as possible," Samson said.
"It feels really great. To be honest, I kind of knew I was in good form from the last game, so I thought I needed to continue. I think it's not easy to find form in crucial games for your country, so I thought I needed to make the most of my batting. So I gave myself extra time," he added.
Samson said the hosts wanted to put as many runs as possible at Wankhede.
"I calculated my innings a bit. I prepared really well, and I think things went well. I got a bit of luck at the start, and then I just wanted to carry on. Knowing that we were playing at Wankhede, we know that no score is stoppable here, so I just wanted to get as many runs as possible," Samson said.
"Even 250 looked like a chaseable target here, and England played really well. All the credit goes to how they batted, and we had a great semifinal," he added.
England were all out for 246 for seven, falling short by seven runs.
Missing out on a century didn't matter to Samson at all.
"I think it doesn't matter. I think, you know, 100 is just a number. It's not always possible to score a hundred. It depends on the situation, the game, and the conditions. Once you get a start, you have to keep batting hard. You just have to keep going," Samson said.
"And once you end up on the right side, who knows, which amount of runs I'm getting. So I'm very happy to get whatever I'm getting and very happy to contribute to the winning side for my country," he added.
India will take on New Zealand in the final on Sunday in Ahmedabad.