New Delhi: Sanju Samson won his second consecutive Player of the Match award to put India in the final of the T20 World Cup 2026 on March 5. The Indian wicketkeeper-batter scored 89 runs off 42 balls, smashing eight boundaries and seven maximums.
But it was Jasprit Bumrah’s sensational spell that helped India to seal a spot in the final by registering a seven-run win over England. On a batting surface at the Wankhede Stadium where 499 were scored, the pacer proved to be a major point of difference.
Bumrah gave away just eight runs in the 16th over when Bethell and Jacks were smashing the Indian bowlers. He then nailed perfect Yorkers in the 18th over and conceded just six runs to shift the match in India’s favour. The pacer also dismissed in-form Harry Brook and became the 8th Indian bowler to complete 500 wickets in international cricket.
‘Bumrah is a once-in-a-generation bowler’
Samson credited Bumrah for his sensational spell and said that he’s the one-in-a-generation bowler. The wicketkeeper-batter further added that the Player of the Match award should actually go to him.
“All credit goes to Jasprit Bumrah. I think the world-class bowler, once-in-a-generation bowler… I think that’s what he delivered today. This [award] should go to him, actually. So, if he didn’t bowl that way in the death overs, I would not be standing here. So all credit goes to the bowlers for how they backed themselves in the tough conditions,” Samson said after India’s win.
Team India skipper Suryakumar Yadav also agreed with Samson and said that everyone knows how capable Bumrah is, and what he’s done for the team over the years.
“Absolutely. I mean, you know how capable he is, and what he’s done over the years for India. And he did the same thing today. Embraced it, raised his hand again, showed character, and pulled the game away from them,” Suryakumar said in the post-match presentation.
India will take on New Zealand in the T20 World Cup final in Ahmedabad on March 8.