KL Rahul praises Sanju Samson after clinching the title against South Africa

KL Rahul, Sanju Samson (Pic: File Pic)

After winning the ODI series against South Africa, the "Men in Blue" skipper KL Rahul praised Sanju Samson for his impressive ton. Samson received the Player of the Match award for his stunning performance. KL said that he is pleased to see the batter perform well against Proteas even though he hasn't got a lot of chances at the top of the batting order.

Samson's century, Rinku Singh's fiery cameo and Arshdeep Singh's stupendous show with the ball helped India seal the three-match ODI series by 2-1 against South Africa. India won the final clash by 78 runs at Boland Park on Thursday.

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"Sanju has been a phenomenal performer in the IPL, unfortunately, hasn't got a lot of chances at the top of the order for various reasons but nice to see him do well today," KL Rahul said in a post-match presentation.

India's young brigade performed well in all departments and helped Men in Blue clinch an ODI series 2-1 after a thoroughly convincing victory in the final match.

"Always love being around the boys. Nice to get back on the cricket field after a disappointing World Cup. Have played with a lot of them in the IPL, nice to get out here and play with them. Usually, my message is to always enjoy the game, to give your best and not worry about the rest. They're great cricketers but few of them haven't played internationally so it's about giving them some time to adjust. It's about making their roles clear and they all gave their 100% so nothing more I can ask," Rahul added.

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Tony de Zorzi scored the highest for South Africa with 81 off 87 while captain Aiden Markram played a knock of 36 runs. For India Arshdeep Singh was the chief destructor as he bagged 4 wickets conceding just 30 runs while Washington Sundar returned with a figure of 2-38.

India after winning the first match in the series, the mighty South Africa made a comeback in the second ODI by securing a win by eight wickets. In the third and final match, the "Men in Blue" put on team performances and clinched the title by winning the match by 78 runs.

This is the second time India defeated Proteas at their home in a bilateral series before this Men in Blue registered a 5-1 series victory over South Africa in 2018. With this win, KL Rahul became only the second Indian captain to win an ODI series in South Africa after Virat Kohli (2018).

(With ANI Inputs)