Sanju Samson and Phil Salt made history for all the wrong reasons in T20 International cricket on Sunday (November 10), as both players, who had earlier been the heroes with centuries, suffered the rare misfortune of being dismissed for ducks in their subsequent matches. This unexpected turn of events saw both players go from batting heroes to zeroes in a matter of days, and they now share a rare and unwanted T20I record.
Sanju Samson was in scintillating form in the series opener against South Africa, scoring a brilliant 107 runs off 50 balls in India’s victory. It was his second successive T20I century, as he had also been in top form in the home series against Bangladesh. Samson entered the second match of the series with high expectations, but things took a sharp turn. In the third over of the match, South African pacer Marco Jansen trapped him for a golden duck, sending him back to the pavilion without troubling the scorers. This marked an abrupt end to his excellent run and added to a rare list of players who have scored a century followed by a duck in T20Is.
The 29-year-old, who had just turned 29 on November 11, became the latest to join this dubious group. Samson, who had made a name for himself with a match-winning knock earlier in the series, now holds the unfortunate distinction of being the first Indian player to register four ducks in a calendar year in T20 internationals. His form has certainly been inconsistent, but his ability to bounce back from such setbacks will be key in the upcoming matches.
Meanwhile, England's Phil Salt also found himself in an incredibly rare situation. Salt, who had dazzled in the first T20I against the West Indies with an unbeaten 103 off 54 balls, was dismissed for a golden duck in the second T20I at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados. After a match-winning knock that had given England a crucial lead in the series, Salt's downfall came quickly in the very first ball of England’s run chase of 159, where he was dismissed by Akeal Hosein. Just like Samson, Salt experienced the dramatic shift from hero to zero, making a rare entry into the list of players who have managed to score a T20I century followed by a duck.
These two players are not the first to achieve such a rare and unfortunate feat in T20Is. The legendary Chris Gayle, who has set numerous T20I records, was the first to achieve this, scoring 117 runs against South Africa in September 2007, only to be dismissed for a duck in the same series against Bangladesh. Other prominent players in the list include New Zealand’s Brendon McCullum, who scored 116* against Australia in 2010 before falling for a duck against Sri Lanka later that year, and Colin Munro, who managed a century against Bangladesh in 2017 but was dismissed for a duck in the same series.
Additionally, players like Rilee Rossouw (South Africa), Yashasvi Jaiswal (India), and Aaron Johnson (Canada) also feature in this rare category, demonstrating how difficult it is for any player to maintain consistent form in T20 cricket. Jaiswal, a promising Indian talent, had scored a century against Nepal in October 2023 but followed it up with a duck against Bangladesh in the same month, further underlining how fleeting such feats can be.
For Samson and Salt, this rare record is certainly a humbling experience, but both players will be keen to quickly bounce back from their respective setbacks. It’s important to note that both players have been in good form, and this series of events should not overshadow their talent. Samson, especially, has been pivotal to India’s T20I lineup, and Salt’s performance in the first match against the West Indies shows that he too has the potential to play match-winning knocks.
Despite this setback, both players will hope to turn the page quickly. Samson, in particular, will be looking to bounce back from his duck in the next game, while Salt will be eager to prove that his century was no fluke. Their teams will certainly be counting on them to put these rare disappointments behind and deliver in the upcoming matches.
The rare occurrence of a golden duck following a century has only added a unique chapter to the T20I history books, but it’s crucial for both Samson and Salt to learn and grow from this experience. T20 cricket is a game of rapid changes, and both players have shown that they can be match-winners. Their next performances will be a true test of their resilience and ability to recover from such disappointments.
