Suryakumar Yadav was an elated captain as India registered a thumping 61-run victory over South Africa in the first T20I match at Kingsmead, Durban on Friday (November 8).
Riding on opener Sanju Samson’s second consecutive T20I hundred (107 off 50), the visitors racked up a massive 202/8 on the board.
In reply, the Proteas innings folded for 141 in 17.5 overs. The spin twin of Varun Chakaravarthy (3-25) and Ravi Bishnoi (3-28) were the wrecker-in-chief with the ball, picking up three scalps each in their four overs.
After the win, Suryakumar appreciated his team for sticking to the fearless brand of cricket that they have adopted in the last few series.
“We have not changed our brand of cricket in the last 3-4 series, very happy with the win," the Indian skipper said while speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony.
Surya acknowledged the hard work that Samson has put through the years, which now has been paying dividends as the explosive right-hander has strengthened his claims to be India’s first-choice opener in T20Is.
“The amount of hard work he has put in over the last few years, doing the boring work, he is eating the fruits of that,” he stated.
The captain also lauded Samson’s approach when he was nearing the century mark. “He was in the 90s but still he was looking for a boundary, playing for the team which shows the character of the man and that's what we look for," he remarked.
Suryakumar further spoke about his plans to introduce spinners at a crucial stage. He also talked about his captaincy, saying that the talented players in the squad have made his job quite easy.
"That was the plan, we were looking for the crucial wickets of Klaasen and Miller and the way they (spinners) delivered, it was incredible," he said.
"As I said already at the toss and the PC, boys have made my job easier, I don't need to carry any baggage, the way they have been showing that fearless attitude, the boys are enjoying themselves on and off the field, which makes my job easier,” he added.
Following Samson’s dismissal, none of the middle-order batters like Hardik Pandya, Rinku Singh and Axar Patel managed to give the finishing touch to the innings. But the Indian captain was not concerned at all.
“The brand of cricket we play, even though we lose a few wickets, we want to play without fear. It's a T20 game, we know we have 20 overs but if you can score 200 in 17 overs, why not," Suryakumar concluded.
