India enter T20 World Cup 2026 final, beat England by seven runs

India have defeated England by seven runs in the T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The show started with Sanju Samson’s charismatic knock of 89 runs, which was followed by some fantastic cameos from Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya and Tilak Varma, as India posted 253 runs on the board in the first innings, which is their second-highest total in T20 World Cup history. 

Things were expected to go in India’s favour in the second innings, but England had a different mindset. They didn’t succumb to the scoreboard pressure, despite losing some early wickets. Notably, the Harry Brook-led side lost three wickets in the powerplay and the game was heavily in favour of India. However, what followed was some extraordinary batting but at the end of the day wasn't enough. 

Batting at four, Jacob Bethell stole the show with his blistering knock of 105 runs off 48 balls. Will Jacks supported him with a brisk 35 but it was Bethell who kept the scoreboard ticking till the very end but it



wasn’t enough in the end as Indian bowlers pulled things back brilliantly in the end.

Meanwhile, even though Axar Patel went on to concede 35 runs in his three overs, his fielding effort was commendable. His effort to send Jacks packing was arguably one of the biggest turning points of the game. The all-rounder dived to his left to catch a spectacular but upon realising that he would cross the boundary, threw it to Dube, who ultimately caught a simple one. 

Jasprit Bumrah, on the other hand, once again delivered a bowling masterclass in the death overs, winning the game for the hosts. Hardik Pandya and Arshdeep Singh were phenomenal as well in the end, ensuring the win. With 30 runs required in the final over, England were clearly under pressure and on top of that, Bethell was run out in the first delivery itself. Jofra Archer smacked a couple of sixes in the remaining deliveries but it wasn’t enough.

India will now play New Zealand in the summit clash on March 8 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.