Mumbai: Opener Sanju Samson said Thursday he wants “one more” match-winning knock to enable India to defend the T20 World Cup, after his 89 helped edge England in a thrilling semi-final.
India rode on Samson’s 42-ball innings to post a mammoth 253-7, a total that England nearly chased down at Mumbai’s Wankhede stadium, finishing on 246-7. Jacob Bethell’s brilliant 105 kept England in the hunt till the last over before Harry Brook’s team fell short by seven runs and India marched into their fourth final in the T20 World Cup. India will face New Zealand in Sunday’s final in Ahmedabad as they attempt to become the first team to retain the trophy and the first to win it on home soil. They could also become the first team to win the title three times.
Samson has been key to putting pre-tournament favourites India in this position after he struck form with an unbeaten 97 in a winner-takes-all contest against the West Indies on Sunday. He kept up his form in the semi-final and struck eight fours and seven sixes to put India in the driver’s seat.
“It feels really great. I have been actually for a few years trying to do something like this for my country,” player of the match Samson said. “So definitely I should be very grateful, but I kind of feel that we have one more step to go. “If we do that, then I think all the work, everything was worth it. So I think that one more innings should be really good.”
The 31-year-old Samson has been in and out of the Indian team and played just one group match against Namibia, when Abhishek Sharma was out with illness. India brought back Samson in their Super Eights match against Zimbabwe to break up the all left-handed opening partnership of Abhishek and Ishan Kishan and he has not looked back since.
