India hold nerve to win thriller as Bethell century goes in vain, advance to final against New Zealand
India (Source: X/@BCCI)
Published - 05 Mar 2026, 09:27 PM• Read time - 8 mins
Match Overview
India and England locked horns in the second semi-final of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday, March 5. England captain Harry Brook won the toss and elected to bowl first.
Sanju Samson carried on from where he had left off in Kolkata as the right-hander took on Jofra Archer in the first over. Abhishek Sharma, on the other hand, succumbed to an off spinner once again playing a loose shot. Will Jacks deceived the southpaw as the Punjab batter was caught at deep midwicket in the second over. Ishan Kishan joined Samson and the duo did not let the early wicket affect them. Samson, in particular, was stroking the ball sweetly while Kishan slashed a couple of boundaries early in his innings.
India ended the powerplay at a healthy 67/1 as the left-right pair upped the rate of scoring in the overs to come. The eighth and ninth overs delivered by Liam Dawson and Sam Curran yielded 19 and 20 runs, respectively, as Samson completed his second consecutive half century off 26 balls. The partnership continued to prosper and the England bowlers were unable to stem the run flow. But, a miscue from Kishan in the 10th over brought another wicket for England, thus ending the 97-run 45-ball partnership.
India found themselves at a very good position at the halfway mark though, scoring 119 runs for the loss of two wickets. The team management sent in Shivam Dube at number four tonight and the left-hander did not disappoint. Samson looked set for a hundred, but the team's cause led to his demise for 89 runs off 42 balls in the 14th over. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav could not contribute much as Dube took the lead in the fourth-wicket partnership of 30 runs.
Handy cameos from Hardik Pandya, Tilak Varma, and Dube himself helped India accelerate in the death overs which led to another 250+ total from them. In the end, the home team ended their innings at a massive 253/7 thus registering the fourth-highest total in T20 World Cup history.
Just like India, England also suffered an early setback in the form of Phil Salt who was caught out in the second over. Captain Brook, who came in next, could not get going as Jos Buttler kept the runs coming from the other end. The short stand, ultimately, came to an end with Brook's wicket in the fifth over courtesy a sensational catch by Axar Patel. That brought Jacob Bethell to the crease and the fireworks continued to come. Buttler, however, fell victim to Varun Chakravarthy in the last over of the powerplay as the scoreboard read 68/3 at the end of it.
England continued to attack relentlessly as Tom Banton fired a couple of sixes before he succumbed to Axar in the eighth over. Despite losing four wickets for 95 runs, England still seemed to be in the game given the way they batted until this point. Will Jacks and Bethell maintained the same momentum in the initial stages of their partnership and upped the tempo gradually. Within no time, India seemed anxious and England appeared to make a dramatic run for the finish line.
The fifth-wicket partnership, which was worth 77 runs off 39 balls and improved England's chances considerably, came to an end in the 14th over though as Will Jacks was out to a fantastic relay catch in the deep by Axar and Dube. The onus fell on Bethell and Sam Curran as the former took the lead and scored important boundaries at crucial times to sustain the pressure on India.
Just when England looked to have the advantage with three overs to go and 45 runs to get, Bumrah produced a game-changing over in which he conceded just six runs. The pressure was back on England as Pandya came on to bowl the next over. Bethell, meanwhile, got to his first hundred in the format off 45 balls, but the over belonged to India as Curran was caught at deep wicket by Varma.
With 30 runs needed off the last over and Bethell on strike, India were favourites. The southpaw was run out off the first ball while going for the second run and with it England's hopes were dashed. A couple of lusty blows from Archer meant that England could only reduce the margin of loss as India edged past England by just seven runs to advance to the final against New Zealand in Ahmedabad on Sunday, March 8.
Top run-scorer of the match
|
Player |
Team |
Runs |
Balls |
Fours |
Sixes |
Strike Rate |
| Jacob Bethell |
ENG |
105 |
48 |
8 |
7 |
218.75 |
Top wicket-taker of the match
|
Player |
Team |
Overs |
Maidens |
Runs |
Wickets |
Economy |
| Hardik Pandya |
IND |
4 |
0 |
38 |
2 |
9.50 |
Player of the Match
Sanju Samson
The Kerala star batter fired again for India as Abhishek's lack of form and early dismissals rested more responsibility on the right-hand opener's shoulders. Given the fact that he was dropped on 15 by Brook, it became even more important for the batter to utilise it and score big this time around as well. Samson struck the ball crisply and took calculative risks to yield runs at a healthy pace and complemented Kishan very well in the 97-run second-wicket partnership. The 31-year-old's form augurs well for India as they head into the most important match of the tournament.
Turning Point
The 18th over bowled by Bumrah, which cost India just six runs, shifted the momentum back in their favour. With 45 runs needed off the last three overs and the way England were batting, they had a more than realistic chance to overhaul the 254-run target. But, this over put the pressure back on England and the effect of it was seen in the next over as Pandya reaped the benefits of it with Curran's scalp.What the captains said
Winning Team Captain, Suryakumar Yadav (IND)
"It’s an unbelievable feeling. Obviously, playing in India, leading such a wonderful side, and with the World Cup happening here, going to Ahmedabad to play that final. I think it’s a special feeling for all the boys. (On Sanju Samson) I think he knew what he wanted to do as soon as he went in to bat. Even when a wicket fell, he knew the wicket was good, so he kept pressing the pedal. The way he batted was exactly what the team required. It was due after all the hard work he’s been putting in over the last year. It was a special knock today."
"(On the England run-chase) Oh my God! I just told Harry Brook, “How much more do we need to score against you guys?” But honestly, it was a good wicket. The way they batted, I don’t want to take credit away from them. They were always in the game and always in the chase. But the way Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, and the other bowlers pulled the game back was unbelievable. (On Jasprit Bumrah) We all know what he’s capable of and what he’s done for India over the years. He did the same thing again today, raised his hand and showed character to pull the game away from them. It was a special bowling performance."
"(On India’s superb catching) I think we need to give some credit to our fielding coach Dilip T as well. The way he’s been working with the boys in practice sessions, making them fun and competitive - the boys have responded really well. Even after their personal skill sessions, they put in extra work for the team, and that’s showing on the field."
Losing Team Captain, Harry Brook (ENG)
"We just thought there might be a little bit of hold early on with the pitch being fresh, and we expected a bit more spin in the first innings. But it didn’t quite turn out that way. (On the Indian batting). Obviously, they played extremely well. All of our lads should be really proud of the way we played tonight and throughout this competition. Absolutely. I’ll hold my hands up and say that I made a big mistake there, dropping Samson. As the old saying goes, catches win matches, and unfortunately things just didn’t go our way in the field tonight. At the end of the day, it cost us."
"(On the bowling) Just a bit of misexecution here and there. We probably didn’t execute as well as we could have. But the Indian batters are some of the best in the world, and if you misexecute against them, the ball goes out of the park. So yeah, we probably didn’t execute as well as we could have, but like I say, we gave it a red-hot crack and unfortunately ended up on the wrong side of the result."
"(On Jacob Bethell) He was absolutely unbelievable. I think he’s going to earn some serious money in his career and have a fantastic career with England. He showed the world how good he is tonight. Unfortunately we were on the wrong side, but that innings is a huge positive to take away from this competition. Seeing him go out there and take the game on from ball one, showing everyone what he can do, it was special."
