Clutch Samson, Legend Bumrah & Stunning Axar Take India To 4th T20 World Cup Final

Image: BCCI

Sanju Samson’s stunning 89 of 42 deliveries, including a legendary spell from Jasprit Bumrah (33/1) and two incredible catches from Axar Patel, took India to their fourth T20 World Cup Final as they defeated England by seven runs at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Wednesday. India will now face New Zealand in the T20 World Cup 2026 final at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, 8 March 2026.

England won the toss and asked India to bat first

Citing how successful Mumbai has been as a chasing venue, England captain Harry Brook decided to bat first after winning the toss. They brought in one change, as all-rounder Jamie Overton replaced leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed in the playing eleven. In the meantime, India, who wanted to bat first, kept their playing eleven unchanged despite rumours of Rinku Singh returning to the team.

Sanju Samson gave India the perfect start

Samson, who had played the innings of his life in the last match against West Indies in Kolkata, started on a great note in the semi-final as well. The right-handed wicket-keeper batter hit a boundary and a six in the first over against Joe Franchard, which set the tone for the Indian team.

Although India lost Abhishek Sharma in the second over off Will Jacks, Ishan Kishan made sure that they continued the momentum. With Sanju Samson hitting boundaries in every over, India reached 67/1 at the end of the powerplay.

India sent Dube at 4

After Ishan Kishan's quick-fire 39 with the bat, India played the trick by sending Shivam Dube at number four as they wanted to continue the left and right-hand combination at the crease.

Dube used his long handle to hit the spinners, although Brook tried to restrict him by introducing Jofra Archer in his second spell. Meantime, Sanju Samson reached his second consecutive fifty of the tournament in just 26 balls as India looked to score big in the first innings.

Hardik & Tilak gave India a great finish

With Samson being selfless and going for a boundary against Will Jacks, India lost the right-handed batter in the 14th over. Captain Suryakumar Yadav (11 off 6) did get a good start but couldn't continue, and Hardik Pandya joined Shivam Dube to give the Indian team a great finish with the bat.

After Dube was run out in the 18th over on 43, it was Tilak Varma's 21 of 7 and Hardik Pandya's 27 of 12 that took India's total to 253 for 7 in the first innings as Jofra Archer finished with 61/1 in his four overs.

Hardik struck gold early

After his great show with the bat, Hardik struck gold with the ball as he dismissed Phil Salt with the first ball of his spell. Former England captain Jos Buttler, who was short of runs in this campaign, started hitting the gaps in the powerplay.

Jasprit Bumrah then returned Harry Brook to the pavilion as Axar Patel took a stunning catch running backwards. Varun Chakravarthy, although he went for three sixes in a row against Jacob Bethell, made a comeback in his first over by removing the stumps of Jos Buttler as England finished with 68 for 3 at the end of the powerplay.

Bethell fought alone for England

Although England had an uphill task, it was Jacob Bethell who kept the visitors in the game throughout the second innings. The young left-hander kept hitting the boundaries and hit sixes at will to first reach his fifty in just 19 balls and then keep the required run rate close to 13 to give England a chance.

Bumrah’s spell separated the two teams

Just like other games, Will Jacks, who has been England's best player throughout the tournament, tried to give Bethell a solid hand from the other end. However, it was Axar Patel's assisted catch to Shivam Dube that turned the game in India's favour again.

After that, although Bethell and Sam Curran tried to do their best with the bat, they could not score off Bumrah's yorkers in the slog overs.

Bumrah gave away just 14 runs in his final two overs to take the game far away from England. With 39 needed from the final two overs, Hardik Pandya conceded just 9 runs in his final over to give Shivam Dube 30 runs to defend in the 20th over.

Eventually, India defeated England by 7 runs to ensure they will have a chance to create and repeat history on Sunday and become the first-ever team to successfully defend the T20 World Cup title.