Sanju Samson is a quality player, we wish he didn’t have that innings against us: Shai Hope

West Indies captain Shai Hope has heaped praise on the Indian opening batter Sanju Samson, who propelled the Indian team to the semi-final of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup 2026 with his unbeaten 97-run knock against the West Indies.

Speaking at the post-match press conference, Hope termed Samson a quality player, adding that he had hit the ball very nicely right from the initial moments of the 196-run chase with a very smart and calculated strategy.

“He played really well, he's a good player, cause it’s also a good surface. Especially in the night time when you're chasing on a pitch like this in the Eden Gardens, it's usually easier to score freely. But taking nothing away from him, like I said he's a quality player, he's been playing really well for so many years now and it’s one of those things, the batter just gets the better of our bowlers. It’s part of the game as well, you must give credit for the innings that he played today,” Shai Hope said in the post-match press conference.

“He's played a really good innings. Like I said, there were so many small margins, but you must give a guy credit when he's playing really well. He shot the ball very nicely from the beginning all the way through to the end of the innings and he's paced it really nicely. He was very smart and calculated with the way he went about his strokes. But yeah, you must give him an A plus with the way he played today. But we wish he didn't have that innings today,” he added.

Delving into the details of the match, the West Indies were entrusted to bat first after losing the toss and they posted an impressive total of 195/4 in 20 overs. In response, India finished off the game in 19.2 overs with five wickets in hand. Sanju Samson was the top batter with a 97-run unbeaten knock.

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