Three Cheers: Rampant India complete T20 World Cup treble
The final Sunday of the ICC T20 World Cup turned into a memorable day for India, who shattered multiple records on their way to retaining their title.
Runs flowed from the bats of Sanju Samson, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Shivam Dube in the form of sixes and boundaries as India registered a stunning 96-run win over New Zealand. The win coming at the same ground where they lost the 2023 50-over World Cup final against Australia made it a special day for the hosts. India become the first side to win three T20 World Cup titles, the first to win two in a row and also the first host side to be crowned champions.
It was another awe-inspiring performance with the bat from India as the innings witnessed 18 sixes and 19 boundaries. India posted 255/5, the highest total in the T20 World Cup final.
As happened with English skipper Harry Brook in the semifinal, New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner won the toss and put India in on a batting friendly track. This was not the only questionable decision from Santner, who dropped Cole McConchie for the final. The off-spinner had dismissed southpaws Quinton de Kock and Ryan Rickleton in the only over that he bowled in the semifinal. Instead, he picked Glenn Philips to bowl the second over; and though he only conceded five runs, Philips could not do any lasting damage.
Samson (89 off 46 balls) went on a rampage against New Zealand’s pacers in the company of an equally destructive Abhishek (52 off 21 balls). Ishan (54 off 25 balls) proved that he can be just as destructive batting at No. 3, despite opening in the early stage of the tournament. Dube’s late 8-ball 26 gave the Indian side a psychological advantage by crossing the 250 mark. After a slow start, Samson and Abhishek cut loose to score 92 runs in the powerplay. Abhishek scored an 18-ball 50 with his signature straight sixes. However, Rachin Ravindra removed Abhishek after a 98-run opening stand off 43 balls. Ishan kept the tempo up with four sixes and as many boundaries as he shared a 105-run stand off 48 balls with Samson, taking India past the 200-run mark. Jimmy Neesham removed Samson, Ishan and skipper Suryakumar Yadav (0) in the 16th over. However, Dube smashed two sixes and three boundaries to finish the innings on a high. But the night belonged to the resurgent Samson, who recorded the highest individual score in a T20 World Cup final. He overtook West Indies’ Marlon Samuels, who scored 85 against England in the 2016 final, and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson, who made 85 against Australia in the 2021 final.
He joined Virat Kohli and Shahid Afridi in an elite list of batters with fifties in the T20 World Cup semifinal and final. Samson’s innings included five fours and eight sixes at a strike rate of 193.48.
Samson ended the tournament with 321 runs in five innings at an average of 80.25 and a strike rate of 199.37, with 27 fours and 24 sixes. He also broke Kohli’s record of most runs by an Indian batter in a single T20 World Cup.
