New Delhi: Sanju Samson played an astonishing knock to help India defeat the West Indies by five wickets and qualify for the semifinals of the T20 World Cup 2026 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday, March 1. Sanju Samson endured a lean patch in the five-match T20I series against New Zealand. He played the second game of the tournament in Abhishek’s absence but was dropped from the playing XI afterwards.
He again got a chance to play in the T20 World Cup after South Africa thrashed India in the first Super 8 match and delivered a match-winning performance against the Windies. Samson scored an unbeaten 97 runs off 50 balls, smashing 12 boundaries and four maximums to help India chase down a massive 196-run target with four balls remaining.
He played one of his best knocks in such a pressure situation and looked calm throughout the chase, holding one end firmly to finish the match with a boundary. Samson registered the second-highest individual score for India in the history of the T20 World Cup.
He stitched crucial partnerships with Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube to help the Men in Blue register their highest successful run chase in the history of the tournament. India became the fourth and final team to qualify for the semifinals of the tournament after New Zealand, England and South Africa.
Former cricketers and fans praise Sanju Samson
JUSTICE IS SERVED AT EDEN GARDEN 🥹
– GOD IS REAL, THIS IS SANJU SAMSON pic.twitter.com/6sC3g3KH2E
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) March 1, 2026
Semi-final spot on the line, and the boys handled it beautifully!
Handling the final overs well in both innings gave us the edge. Sanju Samson’s calm presence at the crease was wonderful to watch. That kind of presence lifts a side.
Brilliant effort from everyone. On to the… https://t.co/Y5874i9v2d
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) March 1, 2026
Respect the name: Sanju Samson!!!
— Ian Raphael Bishop (@irbishi) March 1, 2026
Sanju Samson the man for India in a do or die game. Focus is never on him but he proves to be the game-changer.
— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) March 1, 2026
Not a single shot in the air from the 12th to 19th overs
Low risk boundaries,controlled batting from Sanju Samson.Proper chasing masterclass.
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) March 1, 2026
Sanju Samson 🫡
India 🇮🇳
And we are in the semis 😍😍— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) March 1, 2026
Sanju Samson. The hands are shivering, the eyes are in tears, thanks for this beautiful generational knock.
— Silly Point (@FarziCricketer) March 1, 2026
India will now take on England in the second semifinal of the T20 World Cup 2026 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on March 5.