[Watch] Sanju Samson falls to Binura Fernando's one-handed stunner in 2nd India vs Sri Lanka T20I
Sri Lankan pacer Binura Fernando grabbed the best catch of the India-Sri Lanka T20I series to send back a dangerous-looking Sanju Samson on Saturday.
It happened on the final ball of the 13th over. Lahiru Kumara bowled a delivery full and wide to Samson, who went for a full-fledged slash on the off-side. He could only get it off the toe of the bat, sending the ball flying to Fernando at deep slip.
The lanky Sri Lankan threw himself into the catch, with his left-hand stretched meters above the ground to pluck it out of thin air. The bowler was surprised and so was the rest of the visiting team as they broke into celebration. Here's a video of the catch:
Fernando just took this catch ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฉ https://t.co/9IuspeITis
#INDvsSLWhat a catch taken by Binura Fernando๐ฑ๐ต#INDvsSL https://t.co/E1uHJyF3PO
The catch was reminiscent of one of the all-time best IPL catches from Suresh Raina during a 2016 match between the Gujarat Lions and the Kolkata Knight Riders.
When Jatin Sapru pointed this on-air to former pacer Irfan Pathan, the latter remarked that Raina fielded in slips for most of his career whereas Fernando doesn't which makes it an even more special take.
India win 2nd T20 to seal series
BCCI
India beat Sri Lanka by 7 wickets in the second T20I ๐
Sheer dominance from India as they chase down the target with 17 balls remaining ๐ช๐ฎ๐ณ
๐ท BCCI
#India #SriLanka #INDvSL https://t.co/ZPl0u2O0Mc
Samson, in his comeback innings after more than a year away from the action was under the pump as he struggled for runs initially. He was helped out by Shreyas Iyer who went on a boundary spree from the other end to keep the run-rate in check.
The Rajasthan Royals (RR) batter came to his own in the 13th over, hitting 22 runs in the first five balls before losing his wicket on the final delivery.
India needed 56 runs from seven overs at that moment and Fernando's moment of magic could have made things tricky for the hosts. However, Ravindra Jadeja's brilliant 39 (15) alongside Iyer's 69 (40) sealed the deal for India in the 16th over. The hosts won the game by seven wickets, also winning the three-match series 2-0.