Inconsistency used to be a big concern for Sanju Samson, which was one of the reasons for him being in and out of the Indian team. But since this year’s IPL, the Rajasthan Royals captain has addressed that aspect, with the result paying him dividends.

Having made a fair contribution during the home T20Is against Bangladesh last month, Samson also turned out to be the first Indian cricketer to score back-to-back centuries in the shortest format when he bossed his way to 107 off 50 balls in the series opener against South Africa in Durban on Friday.

Agreed, the South African bowling wears a depleted look without Kagiso Rabada and Lungi Ngidi and the newcomers struggled. That said, Samson has to be credited for adjusting to the South African conditions and leaving no room for error as he cashed in on anything even marginally ill-directed or off-line.

“I have faced a lot of failures in my career,” Samson said later on Friday. “When you go through such failures, you have a lot of doubts in your mind. But after so many years of experience, I know what my ability is.

“If I spend some time at the wicket, then I have shot-making ability against both spin and pace, and I know that I can contribute to the team and win the match. This is also a reality.”

The Kerala keeper-batter also acknowledged the support he received from captain Suryakumar Yadav, head coach Gautam Gambhirand VVS Laxman (performing the coaching role in the ongoing South Africa series) during his low phase. “The way they communicatewith you in your failures is very important.

“So at that time, I received a lot of phone calls from Gautambhai and Surya, telling me what to work on. ‘You assemble all the spinners in Kerala and practise on rough wickets there.’ So, if the India captain is calling you and telling you how to practise after a duck, then you are confident of having the captain’strust in you. All those small things play a huge role,”Samson emphasised.

In Sunday’s second T20I at Gqeberha, the rest of India’s batting group also needs to step up. Without Samson’s century and his stormy 77-run third-wicket stand with Tilak Varma, there could well have been tougher times for Surya and his teammates.