Defending Champions India Beat England to Reach Record Fourth T20 World Cup Final

March 06, 2026: Defending champions India defeated England by seven runs in the second semi-final to reach the final of the T20 World Cup on Thursday. India will now face New Zealand in the final on Sunday.

England asked India to bat first. Opener Sanju Samson led the charge with a brilliant 89 off 42 balls. He hit eight fours and seven sixes during his innings. Shivam Dube scored 43, while Ishan Kishan made 39. Hardik Pandya added 27, and Tilak Varma scored a quick 21 as India posted a big total of 253 runs. It was India’s second-highest total in T20 World Cup history.

England started the chase with positive intent. Even though they lost three wickets in the power play, they continued to attack. Captain Harry Brook’s team did not give up despite the early setbacks.

𝘋𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘮𝘱𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴. 𝘍𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴 🤩

India are headed to Ahmedabad for the #T20WorldCup 2026 Final 👏 pic.twitter.com/C1sAey3kOM

— ICC (@ICC) March 5, 2026

Jacob Bethell’s Century Goes in Vain

Jacob Bethell played a stunning knock for England. Batting at number four, he scored 105 runs off 48 balls and kept England in the match. Will Jacks supported him with a quick 35 runs. Bethell continued to score runs but did not get enough support from the other end.

Jacob Bethell smashes the second-fastest century in a men's #T20WorldCup to keep England in the hunt against India🙌

It is one of the @marriottbonvoy Milestones of the #T20WorldCup

📝: https://t.co/w7G9C2FaMw pic.twitter.com/0PaWvNZa0G

— ICC (@ICC) March 5, 2026

Axar Patel also made an important contribution in the field. He took a brilliant catch to dismiss Will Jacks. Axar dived to his left to catch the ball, but when he realised he might cross the boundary, he threw it to Shivam Dube, who completed the catch.

In the final overs, Jasprit Bumrah bowled very well and controlled the game for India. Hardik Pandya and Arshdeep Singh also bowled important overs to keep England under pressure.

England needed 30 runs in the final over. However, Jacob Bethell was run out on the first ball while trying to take a second run. Jofra Archer hit two sixes later in the over, but England still fell short.

Jasprit Bumrah finished with figures of 1/33, while Hardik Pandya took two wickets for 38 runs. For England, Will Jacks (2/40) and Adil Rashid (2/41) took two wickets each. Arshdeep Singh (1/51), Axar Patel (1/35) and Varun Chakravarthy (1/64) picked up one wicket each for India.

India will now face New Zealand in the T20 World Cup final on March 8 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.