Dubai [UAE], September 20 : Indian wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson is on the verge of becoming the 12th batter in T20Is to score 1,000 runs for India, with 83 runs left to achieve the milestone.
Sanju could achieve this milestone during his side's Super Four stage starting clash against Pakistan in the Asia Cup on Sunday. Scoring a solid 45-ball 56 with three fours and sixes each during the previous match against Oman, Samson would be high on confidence to score something even bigger.
In 45 T20Is and 39 innings, Samson has scored 917 runs at an average of 26.20 and a strike rate of 150.32, with three centuries and fifties each and a best score of 111.
Since the T20I series against Bangladesh last year, Samson has found a new life as an opener. However, he has not opened in the Asia Cup so far, playing at number three against Oman. In 14 matches and innings since then, he has made 444 runs in 14 innings at an average of 40.36, with a strike rate of above 175, with three centuries and a fifty.
This year in eight T20Is and six innings, Samson has scored 107 runs at an average of just 17.83 and a strike rate of 121.59, with just one fifty. In the home series against England earlier this year, he struggled against short balls, scoring 51 runs in five innings, with the best score of 26.
The top run-getter for India in T20Is is Rohit Sharma, with 4,231 runs in 159 innings at an average of 32.05 and a strike rate of 140.89, with five centuries and 32 fifties. His best score is 121*. He is followed by Virat Kohli (4,188 runs in 125 matches with a century and 38 fifties) and Suryakumar Yadav (2,652 runs in 86 T20Is with four centuries and 21 fifties).
Squads:
India Squad: Abhishek Sharma, Shubman Gill, Sanju Samson(w), Suryakumar Yadav(c), Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Jitesh Sharma, Rinku Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy
Pakistan Squad: Saim Ayub, Sahibzada Farhan, Mohammad Haris(w), Fakhar Zaman, Salman Agha(c), Khushdil Shah, Hasan Nawaz, Mohammad Nawaz, Shaheen Afridi, Haris Rauf, Abrar Ahmed, Hussain Talat, Faheem Ashraf, Hasan Ali, Mohammad Wasim Jr, Salman Mirza, Sufiyan Muqeem.