In a fierce confrontation that lived up to its every potential, India punched their ticket for ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 Semi-Finals with a thrilling five-wicket win over west indies. The 52nd match of the tournament, held under the iconic lights of Eden Gardens, Kolkata on March 01, 2026, saw a packed house of 50,597 fans witness a career-defining performance. sanju samson. Chasing a target that required courage, Samson’s unbeaten 97 powered the Men in Blue to a strong Caribbean total, ending the Super Eight stage on a historic high.
Sanju Samson shares thoughts on his match-winning performance that clinched India’s place in the semi-finals
An emotional Samson was named player of the match after his match-winning heroics. For a player whose international career has often been scrutinized for consistency, this innings felt like a final arrival. Samson chased the target with a mix of aggressive stroke-play and patience and scored 97 runs in just 50 balls with the help of 10 fours and 8 sky-high sixes.
“This means the whole world to me, since the day I started dreaming of playing for my country, this is the day I have been waiting for.” Samson shared during the post-match presentation.
He reflected candidly on his decade-long journey and said that despite “ups and downs” and self-doubt, such as observing legends Virat Kohli And Rohit Sharma From the dugout he was given a virtual masterclass in game finishing.
Samson emphasized his tactical changes during the innings, noting that the previous game “was aboutbe bigger than the first ball“India’s top-order collapse-defeat Abhishek Sharma (10) and Ishan Kishan (10) Quickly-forced him to turn around.
“I wanted to build a partnership and focus on the process. I just looked at the ball and trusted myself to react on merit,He acknowledged that the roar of the Kolkata crowd helped him stay grounded in the present moment.
India overtakes West Indies to reach semi-finals
Batting first, West Indies made a challenging score of 195/4 thanks to the explosive performance of the captain. shy hope (32) And late night fireworks rovman powell (34) and jason holder (37). The Windies lower order added 50 runs in the last 20 balls, putting immense pressure on the Indian bowling unit. Jasprit Bumrah He was one of the bowlers who showed his class with figures of 2/36 Varun Chakraborty Provided significant success to Hope.
Chasing the target of 196, India got off to a slow start as they found themselves at 41/2 in the powerplay. However, Samson found a steady companion Suryakumar Yadav (18) And later Tilak Verma (27). The turning point came when Samson completed his half-century in just 26 balls and gave the hosts back the momentum. Despite the fall of Hardik Pandya’s wicket in the 19th over Shivam Dubey He played a quickfire inning of 8 runs in 4 balls, which ensured that India crossed the line of 199/5 with four balls to spare.
With this win, India are into the semi-finals with tremendous momentum, a middle-order that finally looks settled and a new hero in Samson who has proved that he can win games on the grandest stage.
