[In Pictures] Shashi Tharoor gives hero’s welcome to Sanju Samson after his maiden T20I ton
Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor gave a hero’s welcome to Sanju Samson following his brilliant century against Bangladesh on Monday, October 14. Tharoor offered him a ‘Ponnada’ to recognize his excellence. A ‘Ponnada’ is a shawl usually presented as an honor in South India.
Tharoor’s gesture came after Samson returned to his hometown after scoring the second-fastest T20I century (40 balls) for the Men in Blue in the last game of the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh. The wicketkeeper-batter scored 111 runs off 47 balls, hitting eight sixes and 11 boundaries. The Men in Blue won the match by a mammoth margin of 133 runs.
Sharing the pictures on X, Shashi Tharoor wrote:
“Delighted to give a hero’s welcome to “ton-up Sanju” as @IamSanjuSamson returned to Thiruvananthapuram after his stunning century versus Bangladesh. Found a “ponnada” in the appropriate India colours to honour him with!”
Take a look:
Notably, Tharoor has been a huge supporter of Samson. The 68-year-old had slammed the selectors for ignoring Samson in India's squad for the 2023 ODI World Cup.
“I was chasing it” – Sanju Samson on smashing five consecutive sixes vs Rishad Hossain
Sanju Samson expressed his gratitude to his mentor after hitting five sixes in a row against Rashid Hossain. He said in his post-match comments (via ESPNcricinfo):
“My mentor tells me, 'You have to hit five sixes in an over, I'm waiting for that,' I was chasing it and it happened today.”
Samson further expressed gratitude to head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Suryakumar Yadav for backing him after successive ducks in the T20I series against Sri Lanka. On this, he said:
“Playing for your country that pressure was there but I wanted to perform and wanted to show. But I still kept it basic and wanted to take it by one ball. The leadership tells me they back me no matter what... not just in words but in actions also. Last series I got two ducks and went back to Kerala thinking what will happen, but I'm here.”
Sanju Samson will next be seen in action for India in the four-match T20I series in South Africa.