As India beat England in the T20 World Cup semis by a very narrow 7 runs, once again pacer Jasprit Bumrah is in the spotlight. ENG scored 246/7 while chasing 254, with the man returning with figures of only 1/33 in his 4 overs. In contrast, all the other Indian bowlers were taken to the cleaners by Jacob Bethell (105), and the other batters in the English team.
Sanju Samson makes big statement
Arshdeep Singh gave away 51 runs, Hardik Pandya gave away 38, Varun Chakravarthy a massive 64, Shivam Dube 22 in his solitary over and Axar Patel 35 in 3. And despite this showing Sanju Samson was handed the POTM award for his 42-ball 89. Make no mistake, the keeper-batter was brilliant on the day, but then it was bowling that saved the day at Wankhede for India.
In fact, while receiving the POTM award, Samson admitted, that Bumrah deserved the award. “We are very happy how the team turned up today and all credit goes to Jasprit Bumrah. I think the world-class bowler, once in a generation bowler, I think that’s what he delivered today. I think this (POTM) should go to him actually,” Samson said at the post-match presentation.
IND win by 7 runs, courtesy Jaspirt Bumrah
“So I think if we didn’t bowl that way and the death overs, I think I would not be standing here. So all credit goes to the bowlers, how they backed themselves in the tough conditions,” he further added. Stepping away from this, Samson has been a complete game-changer for Team India, as he scored 97 vs West Indies, and now followed it up with 89 — missing yet another ton.
But then he isn’t the one to be bothered about personal milestones. “I think hundred, actually you can’t actually score a hundred. It actually comes in the process of you actually; it’s not a Test game, it’s not a ODI game where you can go up and down, once you’ve got the start. You’re batting first, there is no other way. You just have to keep going hard,” he added.
Now, India will be up against New Zealand in the T20 World Cup final on Match 7, in Ahmedabad, with the hosts gunning for their third title, while the Kiwis will be looking for their first.
Cricket
Sanju Samson ups Virat Kohli's greatest T20 World Cup knockout innings in IND vs ENG semifinal
