How a ‘four-ball cameo’ overshadowed Samson’s 97* in record chase, Bumrah explains

The internet was full of quotes, memes and whatnot mentioning ‘some 97s are more valuable than a 100’, referring to Sanju Samson’s unbeaten 97 against the West Indies in the T20 World Cup Super 8 match in Kolkata; however, there was this four-ball cameo that sat between India’s semifinal qualification and shock exit, something ace seamer Jasprit Bumrah talked highly about. Samson was indeed Team India’s hero the other night at the Eden Gardens, but what happened before he completed the run chase with two boundaries made all the difference.

On the second ball of the penultimate over, pacer Shamar Joseph removed Hardik Pandya off a low full-toss, which brought in Shivam Dube to the crease. A lanky, in-form batter, with runs besides his name, looked calm and did his job in silence, releasing all pressure from Samson, who gave the final touches and won his team a crucial game.

Standing right within his crease, Dube first smashed a lower full-toss for a boundary at the cow’s corner before finding a gap on the off side, smashing two fours during his brief stay at the crease. Although India was well within the touching distance of a famous win at a time when he arrived, his game awareness and finesse sealed it for the tournament’s co-hosts.

Praising Dube for his game-changing cameo in the 19th over, Bumrah said, "You know, obviously, the two fours that Dube hit, it is in the cricketing books and stats, nobody will really appreciate that, but the people who really know cricket, the two fours really didn't set the pressure on us because sometimes 8-9 runs in the last over, it can get tricky sometimes.”

‘Bumrah’s plan for West Indies’

Bumrah was once again Team India’s best bowler against the West Indies, returning with two wickets in his four-over spell. The right-arm quick was on song during the middle overs, removing Roston Chase and the dangerous Shimron Hetmyer off the slower ones.

Detailing his bowling plans against the Windies batters at the Eden, Bumrah revealed, "The wicket was holding up, so we wanted to use our variation, we did not want to bowl too fast because that was an easy option. Hit our back of length, use our change of pace, so we wanted to make run scoring as difficult as possible, and today was a good day where I got some wickets."

Meanwhile, India will now face England in the second semifinal of the T20 World Cup on March 5 in Mumbai.