IND VS ENG T20 WC26: India Survive Scare At Wankhede, Set Final Clash With New Zealand At Ahmedabad

Defending champions India held their nerves to beat England by seven runs and set up a final clash with New Zealand in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.  

Sanju Samson blazed his way to 89 in 42 balls, powering India to 253 for 7 at the Wankhede Stadium here on Thursday. Jacob Bethell kept England in the hunt with a blistering knock of 105 runs in 48 balls, but the target proved too much in the end. Bethell was run out in the last over after hitting eight boundaries and seven sixes. England managed 246 for 7 in 20 overs.

Playing their third straight semifinal in the IT20 World Cup against England and losing a crucial toss, Samson negated the impact of a possible dew factor by setting a platform for a massive score to give his bowlers enough cushion.  

England made one change, leaving out last match hero Rehan Ahmed  

and bringing in pacer Jamie Overton. But England pacers leaked 150 runs in 11 overs while spinners Will Jacks (2 for 40) and Adil Rashid (2 for 41) picked top-order wickets.   

Samson made full use of an early reprieve given by Harry Brook off Jofra Archer to come up with another masterclass that included eight boundaries and seven sixes, following his unbeaten 97 against West Indies in Kolkata. 

The Kerala dasher was given good company by Ishan Kishan (39 in 18 balls) as the left and right-handed duo shared 97 runs for the second wicket in just 45 balls to set the platform for the middle-order with half of the overs remaining. Shivam Dube (43 in 25 balls) carried forward the momentum before Hardik Pandya (27) and Tilak Varma (21) did the finishing act. 

Abhishek Sharma, who had just 80 runs in six games before the semifinal, took a thorough look at the pitch before the toss alongwith Kishan. However, Abhishek's struggles against off-spinners continued as he fell to a mid-wicket trap again set by Will Jacks, bowling into his legs. He could score just nine runs.  

Opting to field first, England pacer Archer tested Samson with short stuff, but the opener got underway with a boundary and six in the first over. Samson, on 15, was let off by Brook at mid-on as Archer was the bowler at the receiving end. He latched on with a big six and a boundary to give India a flying start. Archer gave 61 runs in his spell, including three sixes by Varma in the penultimate over, before hitting the timber. Sam Curran went for 53 runs, and Jamie Overton gave 36 in three overs.  

Kishan also got into action in Overton's first over as India raced to 50 in 4.3 overs. Sam Curran was also wayward as hosts had a good powerplay which yielded 67 runs. Adil Rashid bowled a tight seventh over, but Liam Dawson and Curran conceded 19 and 20 in their respective overs as Samson and Kishan's flurry of boundaries sent the Wankhede crowd louder. Rashid, who dismissed Kishan, was miserly in the first two overs but was taken apart by Shivam Dube in his third over.  

England's in-form all-rounder Jacks ended Samson's innings in the 14th over. Both Kishan and Samson fell similarly to Abhishek. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav's stay was brief, but Dube and Hardik Pandya maintained the tempo for India before a direct hit from Brook undid Dube after a misunderstanding with Pandya. However, Pandya and Varma finished in style to leave England a mountain to climb in a high-pressure game.  

In chase, India's mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy (1 for 64) was greeted with three consecutive sixes by Bethell, but he dismissed Jos Buttler (25) to derail England's chase after Phil Salt was removed by Hardik Pandya early and Harry Brook was dismissed by Jasprit Bumrah (1 for 33).

 Varun gave 23 runs in the first over, and Bethell kept attacking Chakravarthy to allow him no time to recover. England reached 119 for 4 at the halfway mark despite Axar's tight tenth over. The fifth wicket stand between Bethell and Will Jacks (35) yielded 77 in 39 balls to keep England in the hunt. Bethell then shared 50 runs with Sam Curran (18) to keep the contest alive, but England fell just short in the end. 

Published on: Thursday, March 05, 2026, 10:55 PM IST