Debutant skipper Sanju Samson, a 100 and some behind him, would face the second last ball of his team Rajasthan Royals‘ first match of IPL 2021. The bowler, Arshdeep Singh of the Punjab Kings, had just been hit for six by Samson in the last ball. Five runs needed from two balls to win.

Samson, played Singh to the hands of Deepak Hooda at the long off boundary. At the other end, Royals teammate Chris Morris started down the pitch for a single. Sanju turned him down. Morris scuttled back to the non-striker’s end. Five needed of one. Do or die. Either way, the last ball of the match would script headlines.

Also Read: ‘Almost underarm’: Riyan Parag’s bowling action makes commentators chuckle

Samson hit Arshdeep high towards long off again, but fell short of the six he needed. Deepak Hooda, who set up the Punjab Kings’ big score of 221 for 6, took the catch dismissing Samson at 119. Heartbreak. The Rajasthan Royals looking good for most part of their innings to overhaul that total, but fell short by 4 runs.

“Would have loved to finish it off for my team. I don’t think I could have done better than that. I thought I timed it well for a six but somehow…Catches go down and good catches were also taken. It’s part of the game,” Sanju Samson, named man of the match, said during presentation.

Also Read: Who is Deepak Hooda, the PBKS batsman who smashed 64 off 28 balls

He should know. On the way to his 54-ball 100, Sanju Samson was dropped twice, once by rival skipper KL Rahul at 12 and then on 35 by Mayank Agarwal. Samson became the first player to make a century on his debut as IPL captain.

The wicket-keeper batsman hit seven sixes and 12 fours in his 119 off 63 balls.

“When I am in the zone, and watching the ball well, the sixes come out naturally, and in that process I tend to lose my wickets also. Happy to play that way no matter what… mainly about trusting yourself and the process. Didn’t do anything extra. My mind was playing, not body,” Sanju Samson said after the match.

Clearly excited at his turn as skipper, Samson said that the coin at toss “looked brilliant, and I wanted to take it, but the match referee said no.”

The man who got him, Arshdeep Singh said about the last ball, “The plan was to keep it simple and wide. The only thing was he could get a four. Still the plan was to keep it simple and wide.” He admitted, as did his captain KL Rahul that heartbeats had quickened.

“Heart rate was high but I didn’t stop believing,” said Rahul.

The Rajasthan Royals play the Delhi Capitals in their next match on Thursday, while the Punjab Kings play the Chennai Super Kings on Friday.