How do you even begin to make sense of it?

It wasn't the flattest pitch you'd ever seen. It wasn't a ground with the shortest boundaries on offer. It wasn't even the driest outfield, not after that sharp spell of rain. And yet, India pulled off the unthinkable, racking up a total of 297/6. In a T20I match. Without the Impact Player rule in play.

The only method to this madness was trying to hit every ball for a six. The rest? Total madness.

Think about it: Sanju Samson isn't known for pulverizing the ball. He's a touch player, someone who times his sixes so well that it's often hard to tell which muscles did the work. He's a mix of grace and frustration, and that's where his charm lies. But on Saturday (October 12) in Hyderabad, he powered his way to a 40-ball hundred, his first in T20Is, and then flashed his bicep to the dugout.

Like, what?

While Sanju was at the crease, it didn't matter that he was batting in an unfamiliar position. It didn't matter that Taskin Ahmed was resorting to slower deliveries with the new ball, trying in vain to keep him from punching through the covers. It didn't matter that a malfunctioning floodlight caused an interruption, the kind that often brings a wicket. And it didn't matter that Rishad Hossain switched to round the wicket in a desperate attempt to stop his fifth consecutive delivery from sailing for six.

Just 24 hours earlier, India's assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate had praised Sanju for being selfless during the series instead of "knocking the ball around and getting 50-60 not out". And now there he was, holding the Player of the Match trophy in his hands, embodying this era of fearless batting like no one else before.

"I think we have committed as a group, as a batting group, to go out and dominate each and every game we play in this format," Sanju said after the match. "So as a team, we are doing it. And I'm very grateful that I did something good for the team today."

It can't be easy for Sanju, for whom the opportunities have been few and far in between. Balancing the team's ambitions with his own must be a tough act. To make things more challenging, his chances under this new team management have come as an opener, a spot where India already have plenty of contenders vying for a place. To then score the second-fastest T20I century for India is certainly a great way to get people talking, especially with the next T20 World Cup set to be played in these very conditions.

"I have understood my game, that I can bat anywhere from Nos. 1 to 6. I think I have power and I also have timing in my game," Sanju said. "So it's all about working according to which role I am playing in.

"It can get very tricky when you are competing in the biggest stage of cricket. I think playing for India is not an easy thing. When you have those failures, I think it's very easy to go back and say, 'okay, I should make some runs for myself in the next game'.

"Mentally you go through a lot as an Indian cricketer, and especially in this format, I think where failures are much more than success. As a batsman, you have to keep being aggressive, keep looking at the scoring options and the risk is high. And when the risk is high, definitely there are a lot of failures also. So with all the experience and with so many years of playing IPL and playing international cricket, I have somehow learned to cope with the pressure and the failures. And basically, I think a lot of credit has to go to the dressing room."

There are countless reasons to back Sanju and his ability to dismantle spin is right at the top. The five consecutive sixes he launched off Rishad Hossain didn't just clear the ropes, most of them flew over the bowler's head, each more emphatically than the last. It was a masterclass in destruction, a reminder that on flat pitches and in the modern T20 ecosystem, few can handle spin the way Samson does. It wasn't just brute power; it was an exhibition of control, timing and immense belief from a 29-year-old that anything was possible.

"I knew what I can do to a spinner..." Sanju said, "so I just want to hit maximum runs in that over. And those five sixes happened.

"I think right after the PowerPlay, I knew I was set. Batting first, you never know what is an exact total on any wicket. This was a very good wicket. So we were just trying to get the maximum runs off all the overs."

And the records tumbled. With every clean swing, every effortless lofted drive, every clip off his pads, Samson rewrote the script of what was supposed to be a competitive contest. He turned it into his personal playground. To hit five sixes in an over is rare, but to do so with such nonchalance and precision? That's the stuff of legends.

"From the last two years, I have been thinking I can hit six sixes in an over. Accordingly, I have been working with my mentor, Raiphi Gomez, and telling myself that four-five sixes in an over are possible and should do something like that. So have been practicing and visualizing it and I am very grateful it happened today," Samson said.

Though batting in this position was a bit new for Sanju, the ground certainly wasn't. He had already lit it up with an IPL hundred here back in 2019, memories that were likely still fresh in his mind. And to reach this century alongside Suryakumar Yadav, his captain and partner in tearing down records, must have made the moment even sweeter.

Not only was the communication between the captain and his opener seamless on the day, it had been even stronger in the lead-up to the series, setting the stage for a performance like this.

"Right after Sri Lanka, I think three weeks before this series, I was very fortunate to get a message from the leadership group. I think Surya, Gautam bhai and Abhishek Nayar told me three weeks ago that, 'you will be opening'. So I think that gave me some kind of proper preparation," Samson recalls.

"I went back to RR academy. I was playing lots and lots of new bowlers. They were bowling with new balls. That preparation definitely helps you a tiny bit. I think I was just coming in 10% more ready in this series rather than any other series. So I think that communication with the leadership group really helped me to prepare for this role."

As the night wore on and the crowd's roar grew louder, the breaking of records almost became a side note. This was about something more: a pure, unfiltered celebration of India's batting brilliance and their new-found confidence. There was no need to search for logic, no point in putting the madness into context.