Mumbai, March 5 (NationPress) In a nail-biting encounter, India triumphed over England by a margin of seven runs in the second semi-final of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup held at the historic Wankhede Stadium. This victory sets up a highly anticipated final clash against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. With this win, the Men in Blue inch closer to making history as the first team to successfully defend their T20 World Cup title.

India opted to bat first, amassing a formidable total of 253/7. The innings was spearheaded by Sanju Samson, who delivered a remarkable performance, scoring 89 runs off 42 balls. His innings included eight fours and seven sixes, showcasing his dominance over the English bowlers right from the beginning and steering India’s innings with aggressive batting.

Despite losing Abhishek Sharma early for just nine runs, Samson formed a vital 97-run partnership for the second wicket with Ishan Kishan, who contributed a rapid 39 off 18 balls. Samson followed this up with another 43 runs alongside Shivam Dube, who added a brisk 43 off 25 deliveries.

Samson reached his half-century in just 26 balls, marking his second consecutive fifty in the tournament, before getting caught by Phil Salt off the bowling of Will Jacks while attempting a big shot.

Contributions from Hardik Pandya (27 off 12 balls) and Tilak Varma (21 off 7 balls) propelled India past the 250-run mark. On the bowling side, Will Jacks and Adil Rashid each took two wickets but struggled to control the onslaught from India’s batting lineup.

In response, England faced early challenges with Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, and Varun Chakaravarthy each claiming a wicket during the powerplay. However, England managed to recover somewhat, reaching 68/3 by the end of the sixth over.

Although the top-order faltered, Jacob Bethell kept England's hopes alive with a stunning century, the third fastest for England. He formed critical partnerships with Jos Buttler and Tom Banton, and then a game-changing 77-run collaboration with Will Jacks, followed by a 50-run partnership with Sam Curran.

However, as Pandya dismissed Curran in the penultimate over, pressure mounted on England. Bethell continued to fight valiantly, but with tight bowling from Bumrah and Pandya, England required 30 runs off the final over. Dube was entrusted with bowling the last over, and a brilliant display of fielding led to Bethell’s dismissal on the first ball, extinguishing England’s chances as India restricted them to 246/7 in 20 overs.

The Harry Brook-led team fell short by eight runs, as India advanced to the final for the second time in a row.