Vijay Hazare Trophy 2019: Sanju Samson slams a double hundred against Goa; becomes sixth Indian player to score a List A double ton

Sanju Samson has strengthened his candidature for the wicket-keeper’s position in the limited-overs team of India by recording his maiden double hundred against Goa in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy. The Kerala-based wicket-keeper batsman shattered the record of the highest individual score by a wicket-keeper in List A cricket overtaking Abid Ali’s score of 209*.

The right-handed batsman has been batting really well in the 2019 Vijay Hazare Trophy as he has aggregated 379 runs for his state, Kerala in just 6 matches.

Playing against Goa today, Samson came out to bat at number 3 after Robin Uthappa lost his wicket obstructing the field. The team’s other opener, Vishnu Vinod too departed soon as Kerala stood at 31/2 when Sachin Baby walked out to the middle.

Both the domestic stars stitched a partnership of 338 runs for the third wicket before Baby was dismissed by Lakshay Garg at the individual score of 127. Samson had completed his double ton till then as he guided Kerala to a monumental total of 377/3 in 50 overs.

The Rajasthan Royals star played an unbeaten knock of 212 runs off just 129 deliveries. He batted at an unbelievable strike rate of 164.34 as his innings consisted of 21 boundaries and 10 sixes.

With this epic knock, Sanju became only the second batsman to score a double century in the history of Vijay Hazare Trophy. Also, this innings helped the Indian wicket-keeper eclipse Abid Ali’s score of 209* and become the new holder of the record for the highest individual score by a wicket-keeper in List A cricket.

Another interesting thing to note is that this was the first time Samson reached the triple figures mark in List A cricket and he converted into a double century.

Just last month, he had played a flamboyant knock of 91 runs from 48 deliveries against South Africa ‘A’ in the ODI series.

As Rishabh Pant seems to have lost the confidence of the Indian team management, Samson has certainly made a case for his selection with this innings.

Also see – ICC Test Championship Schedule