Wed Jan 29 11:07:35 UTC 2025: **Sanju Samson Falls Prey to Archer’s Short Balls Again**
**London:** Indian batsman Sanju Samson once again fell victim to England’s Jofra Archer’s short-pitched deliveries in the third T20I match. This marks the third consecutive match where Samson has been dismissed by Archer’s bouncers. Despite undertaking specialized training in the lead-up to the match, practicing against plastic balls on cement wickets to improve his handling of fast, short balls, Samson’s efforts proved futile. He managed only three runs in the third T20I before being caught by Adil Rashid off an Archer short ball. In the first two matches of the series, he scored 26 and 5 runs respectively, both times falling to Archer’s short-pitched bowling. This is particularly striking given that Samson reportedly holds the highest strike rate against short balls in the previous IPL season. The performance fuels previous commentary by former cricketer Aakash Chopra, who suggested Samson struggles against deliveries exceeding 140 kmph.
First Piper 