There was a wide smile on his face, beaming with pride and self-confidence when Sanju Samson went to collect his Man of the Match award. His teammates were applauding and so was his mentor, Rahul Dravid, who has seen the youngster grow as a player in the past few years.

Samson today struck the first hundred of VIVO IPL 2017, and in the process joined the elite IPL ton club, members of which are Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Sachin Tendulkar, to name a few.

The 22-year old’s knock had all the right ingredients required to make it a memorable knock; there was technique, sound temperament, excellent application and elegance to go with it. Samson has been known for his sound batting, which was on display in Delhi Daredevils’ second outing where he scored 102 runs off 63 balls studded with eight 4s and five 6s.

Samson took on the opposition bowlers during the batting powerplay, respected them in the middle overs and then unleashed the big-hitter in him in the death overs.

Samson, who has been under Rahul Dravid’s leadership for five seasons now, has been pretty vocal about his partnership with the batting legend and feels ‘blessed’ to be a part of the Delhi Daredevils squad and train under the watchful eyes of Dravid.

We at iplt20.com spoke with the first centurion of this season and found out more about his knock.

Excerpts:

Name all the Indians who have scored a hundred at IPL?

(Laughs) I don’t remember actually but I think three to four players – Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey..

First century of the season and it has come through your willow. How does it feel and where do you rate this knock of yours?

It’s one of the best knocks of my life and I’m very happy that it has come in the IPL. It is the start of the tournament and we have long way to go from here. I hope to keep contributing to my team’s success.

Would you like to dedicate this hundred to someone?

The dedication must go to the Delhi Daredevils management. I think Rahul Dravid, Zubin Bharucha, Paddy Upton and each member of the team who has supported me throughout. Last IPL season was not a great season for me, but they supported me throughout and I dedicate this knock to them.

Tell us about how you constructed the innings – it was initially chanceless &you played pure cricketing shots.You unleashed an array of big-hits later on.

It is my fifth year of IPL and I have been a part of very good teams and have had very good people around me. I’ve been learning about cricket and to be a better batsman throughout and I think that was what helped me in my innings today.

Sunil Gavaskar said that you remind him of Mahela Jayawardene – with your elegance and timing. Your thoughts?

That’s’ the beauty of IPL, I guess. A legend comparing me to another legend. I am very lucky to be a part of this league and happy about it.

Rahul Dravid has shown faith in you time and again, and today you proved him right. Tell us what has been his contribution in your career?

I was 17 when I was with the Rajasthan Royals and since then I have been working with him and feel very blessed to be learning under his guidance. Not too many people get this chance and I feel I am extremely lucky to have him around and guide me.

Rahul Dravid was your captain at Rajasthan Royals and has now been your coach for the past two seasons.Have you seen any difference in his approach as a captain and coach?

I feel Rahul Dravid, the captain on the field, was a bit more aggressive.But when it comes to coaching he is a lot more calm as opposed to what he was while captaining the side.