New Delhi: Team India captain Suryakumar Yadav hailed Sanju Samson and was seen bowling down to him as a gesture of admiration after the opening batter played a match-winning knock against West Indies to propel the hosts into the semifinals of the T20 World Cup 2026. Samson slammed an unbeaten 97 in the do-or-die clash to help India beat West Indies by 5 wickets and qualify for the semifinals.
It was one of Samson’s finest knocks of his international career as he channelled his inner Virat Kohli to anchor India’s chase to perfection at the Eden Gardens on Sunday. Despite India losing wickets at regular intervals from one end, Samson held one end strongly and finished the chase with a boundary, taking his team into the semis.
Samson neutralised West Indies’ spin ploy, smashing 12 fours and four sixes enroute to his stellar knock, the highest by an Indian in a T20 World Cup game. As Samson garnered praise from all corners, captain Suryakumar too joined the bandwagon and lauded the opening batter for his patience and hard work behind the scenes.
Suryakumar was spotted bowing down to Samson as the right-hander left the field after finishing the chase and taking India through to the semifinals. However, it was not too long back that the Indian skipper appeared to have mocked the opening batter when asked about his inclusion in the team.
When Suryakumar Yadav laughed off Sanju Samson suggestion
As Suryakumar heaped praise on Samson after his match-winning knock against West Indies on Sunday, fans were quick to remind the Indian skipper how he had laughed off the suggestion to bring the opener back into the playing XI earlier in the tournament. The incident took place in the pre-match press conference ahead of India’s Super Eight opener against South Africa.
After Abhishek Sharma’s three ducks in a row, a reporter asked Suryakumar if India were considering bringing back Samson in the XI. At the time, Samson had played only one game in the tournament, scoring 22 off 8 balls against Namibia, replacing Abhishek, who missed out due to a stomach infection.
Suryakumar chose to respond in a manner which many felt was insensitive and mocking of his own teammate. The Indian skipper laughed off the suggestion. “Are you telling me I should include him in place of Abhishek?” Suryakumar replied with a smile on his face. He had another sarcastic response when the reporter asked if Samson could bat at no.3.
“Oh so I should play him instead of Tilak (Verma)?” Suryakumar replied while laughing off the suggestion to include Samson in the team. His response didn’t go down well with many, who slammed the Indian captain for ‘disrespecting’ his own teammate.
Throwback When Suryakumar Yadav mocking reporter when he asked question about including Sanju Samson in playing in place of Abhishek Sharma 😡pic.twitter.com/vWORLfWCbh
— Cricket Central (@CricketCentrl) March 1, 2026
As it turned out, India had to bring back Samson in the playing XI after suffering a crushing 76-run defeat against South Africa. With their semifinal chances at risk, India had to make a change at the top.
Suryakumar Yadav once laughed at Sanju Samson
He thought he is useless in front of Abhishek Sharma
Sanju made him bow down in front of him after #INDvsWI match🔥
If you work hard and perform..the World will be under your feet pic.twitter.com/j4URTDCu0O
— Ankit Khanna (@ankit_khanna) March 2, 2026
Samson responds with the bat
Samson chose to respond to Suryakumar’s comments with the bat. Against Zimbabwe, the right-hander scored a quickfire 24 to get India off to a flyer with a 48-run opening stand, the team’s highest in the tournament at the time. His quick start also helped unlock Abhishek, who went on to notch up a half-century after four consecutive failures.
Thanks to the strong start from Samson and Abhishek, India posted a mammoth 256 runs on the board and won the game by 72 runs to remain alive in the competition. On Sunday, Samson shut his critics in style with an unbeaten 97 against West Indies to single-handedly power India into the semifinals.
Samson remained composed under pressure and played some fabulous strokes across all parts of the ground to take India home with four balls to spare. He also broke Virat Kohli’s record for the highest score by an Indian in a T20 World Cup game. Had it not been for his classy knock, India might have seen their campaign in the T20 World Cup 2026 come to an end against West Indies on Sunday.