Christchurch [New Zealand], October 22 (ANI): Sanju Samson played a pivotal role in India’s four-wicket victory over New Zealand in the first T20I in Christchurch, earning the Player of the Match award for his fluent half-century.Reflecting on the performance, Samson expressed his delight at contributing to a winning start to the series, emphasising that the result was a collective effort rather than an individual achievement. He credited the team’s combined contributions for the opening victory and welcomed the positive start to the five-match series.India defeated New Zealand by 4 wickets in the 1st T20I in Christchurch on Thursday. Samson laid the foundation for India’s chase with a brilliant 67-run knock.“It feels really good. We are just in the moment where the match has been won. Whatever contribution you make, I think it feels good to end up on the winning side. So it’s a really great contribution from all of us in the team. So it was completely a team game today. So really happy that we started nicely for the series,” Samson said after the match.Samson and Abhishek Sharma gave India a flying start. The duo added 93 runs in just 35 balls for the opening wicket. Samson highlighted the positive understanding he shares with Sharma at the top of the order, revealing that their approach is built more on instinct than elaborate planning.He explained that despite having frequent conversations in the middle, the duo largely focuses on watching the ball and playing their natural attacking game.Samson also expressed his enjoyment of opening alongside Abhishek, noting that their aggressive approach has been working well for India.“We do have a lot of conversations happening in the middle, but nothing makes sense, actually. We just watch the ball and hit hard. It has been working very well for us, and I like batting with him at the top,” Samson added.Samson also revealed that his reading of the conditions while keeping wickets helped him assess the pitch, although he adopted a different approach once he came out to bat.He noted that the ball tended to hold up on the surface during the first half of the match but came on more smoothly under the influence of heavy dew later in the game.The Indian batter said he enjoyed batting in the improved conditions, which allowed him to play his shots more freely.“Absolutely, you definitely think about your batting while you are keeping wickets. But I think today I summed up my way to play the game while keeping, but when I came to bat, it was completely different. In the first half, the ball was stopping a bit from the length area, but in the second half I think the ball was coming on very nicely with heavy dew in the outfield. So I really enjoyed the batting,” Samson concluded.Following the wicket of Samson, Naman Dhir and skipper Shreyas Iyer stepped up at a crucial time, steadying the innings and guiding India to a win.Dhir remained unbeaten on 42 off just 15 deliveries, smashing five fours and two sixes to guide India to victory and hand the visitors a 1-0 lead in the five-match T20I series. (ANI)(This content is sourced from a syndicated feed and is published as received. The Tribune assumes no responsibility or liability for its accuracy, completeness, or content.)