India booked a place in the T20 World Cup final with a tense seven-run win over England in the second semifinal at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. England chose to bowl first after winning the toss, making one change by bringing in Jamie Overton for Rehan Ahmed.
Sanju Samson set the tone with an attacking start and survived an early chance when Harry Brook put down a catch. Samson and Ishan Kishan then added 97 for the second wicket, taking India to 67/1 at the end of the powerplay, with Samson racing to a 26-ball fifty.
Samson narrowly missed a century, falling for 89 off 42 balls, while Kishan made 39. Late hitting from Hardik Pandya (27), Tilak Varma (21) and Shivam Dube (43) helped India surge to 253/7, with 76 runs coming in the last five overs.
In reply, England were kept under pressure despite Jacob Bethell’s 105 off 48 balls. With 30 needed off the final over, Bethell was run out on the first ball and England finished on 246/7, exiting the tournament. Samson was named Player of the Match, and India will face New Zealand in the final at Ahmedabad on March 8.
