Samson stars as India hold off Bethell century to reach T20 World Cup final
The Wankhede Stadium was at full volume on Thursday night, and Sanju Samson gave 33,000 fans exactly what they came for. His 89 off 42 balls anchored India's mammoth 253 for 7, a total that proved just enough to withstand a sensational Jacob Bethell century and send the hosts into Sunday's final.
Samson and Dube power India past 250
India's innings was built on controlled aggression from the top. Ishan Kishan (39) and Abhishek Sharma got the powerplay off to a brisk start before Samson took charge through the middle overs. He hit eight sixes and five fours in an innings that mixed clean power with sharp running between the wickets. Shivam Dube chipped in with 43 lower down, while Hardik Pandya's rapid 27 and Tilak Varma's 21 ensured the late overs kept ticking at over 12 an over.
England's bowlers struggled to find a consistent length on a flat Wankhede pitch. The 253 was India's highest ever T20 World Cup total, and it set up a second half that nobody in the ground will forget quickly.
Bethell's century goes in vain
If India thought 253 had settled things, Bethell had other ideas. The 22-year-old left-hander played one of the great T20 World Cup innings, smashing 105 off just 48 balls to drag England back into a game that looked beyond them at the halfway mark. He hit cleanly through the line and found gaps that didn't seem to exist, punishing anything short or full with equal ease.
But cricket is a team game, and England's middle order couldn't keep pace with the required rate once Bethell fell. Jos Buttler's poor tournament continued with another low score, and without a second big partnership to sustain the chase, England finished on 246 for 7.
Bumrah holds his nerve at the death
Jasprit Bumrah's figures of 1 for 33 from four overs don't tell the whole story. He bowled the 18th and 20th overs when England needed 41 off 18 balls, conceding just 14 runs across those two overs and taking the crucial wicket that broke England's late charge. Hardik Pandya was similarly tight at the death, and between them they squeezed out those seven runs that separated the two sides.
Captain Suryakumar Yadav will be pleased with how his attack held up under enormous pressure. Defending totals in T20 cricket is never straightforward, and doing it against a side with Bethell in that kind of form was a proper test of nerve.
India face New Zealand in Sunday's final
India now head to Ahmedabad to face New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday. The Black Caps demolished South Africa by nine wickets in the first semi-final on Wednesday, powered by Finn Allen's record-breaking century. It sets up a final between two sides in outstanding form, and with 132,000 fans expected to pack the world's largest cricket stadium, the atmosphere will be something else entirely.
The combined 499 runs in this semi-final made it the highest-scoring men's T20 World Cup match in history. For India, the hope will be that their bowlers produce another composed performance when it matters most on Sunday.
