Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], October 17 (ANI): As India takes on West Indies in the T20I series decider in Bengaluru on Saturday, all eyes will be on Sanju Samson, who fired an aggressive half-century during his side's massive 248-run chase at Hyderabad in the previous match. 

The opening pair of Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma will be crucial for India's fortunes as usual, with the series hanging in the balance at 2-2. Sanju will be in focus even more so. Despite his inconsistency in the format, Samson is known to score big once he settles, and the '15-ball formula' has played an immense role in the opener's success this year. 

Sanju has enjoyed a rich run of form for India this year, including three back-to-back fifties during the T20 World Cup this year, during which he was crowned 'Player of the Tournament' for lighting up India's title win with crucial knocks against WI in the Super Eights, England in the semifinal and the final against New Zealand. These innings highlighted how much of a threat Sanju becomes once he settles. 

This year in T20Is, he has made 687 runs in 24 innings at an average of 29.86 and a strike rate of 178.44, with seven fifties, with a best score of 97*. Out of this, there have been 15 instances when Sanju did not last 15 balls, scoring 119 runs at an average of 7.9, with a best score of 27. 

However, once Sanju touches the 15-ball mark, he has mostly scored big, having done so in nine other innings and scoring seven half-centuries. In these nine innings, he has made 568 runs at an average of 71 with a strike rate of over 196.

Across T20s, including the Indian Premier League (IPL), Sanju has scored 1,164 runs in 38 matches and innings this year at an average of 34.23, with a strike rate of almost 173, including two centuries and eight fifties. When this 15-ball formula is extended to all of T20s, he has made 939 runs across 14 innings, with an average of 93.90 and a strike rate of over 186, including two centuries and eight fifties. 

Squads: India Squad: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson(w), Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer(c), Tilak Varma, Naman Dhir, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Kuldeep Yadav, Shivam Dube, Ravi Bishnoi West Indies Squad: Shai Hope(w/c), Jewel Andrew, Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Roston Chase, Keemo Paul, Shamar Springer, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Joseph, Akeal Hosein, Amir Jangoo, Matthew Forde, Quentin Sampson, Kamil Pooran.  (ANI)