MUMBAI: India national cricket team defeated England cricket team by seven runs in a nail-biting semifinal of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at Wankhede Stadium on Thursday to book a place in the final against New Zealand national cricket team.
Opting to bat first, India posted a massive 253/7 in 20 overs, powered by a blistering 89 off 42 balls by Sanju Samson. He was well supported by Shivam Dube (43 off 25), Ishan Kishan (39 off 18), Hardik Pandya (27 off 12) and Tilak Varma (21 off 7).
Samson’s explosive knock, featuring eight fours and seven sixes, helped India register the highest-ever total in a T20 World Cup knockout match, surpassing the previous record of 205/4 set in 2012.
Chasing 254, England started aggressively but lost early wickets despite quick runs from Jos Buttler. The momentum shifted when Jacob Bethell launched a stunning counter-attack, smashing 105 off 48 balls with eight fours and seven sixes.
Bethell found support from Will Jacks, who scored 35 off 20 balls, as the pair added 77 runs for the fifth wicket to keep England in the hunt.
However, India held their nerve in the closing overs. Bethell was eventually run out for 105 in the final over as England finished at 246/7, falling just seven runs short of the target.
Pandya was India’s most successful bowler with 2/38, while Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, Axar Patel and Varun Chakravarthy claimed a wicket each.
With the victory, India advanced to the final where they will face New Zealand in the title clash at Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday.
Brief Scores:
India 253/7 (Sanju Samson 89, Shivam Dube 43)
England 246/7 (Jacob Bethell 105, Will Jacks 35)
India won by 7 runs.
