"Give The Award To Jasprit Bumrah": Sanju Samson Refuses ICC's Top Prize

Jasprit Bumrah and Sanju Samson [Source: X]

India finally cruised past the semifinals against England on March 5 to reach Ahmedabad and face New Zealand in the final of the T20 World Cup 2026. It was a nerve-wracking affair at Wankhede where Sanju Samson, with his 42-ball 89, and Jasprit Bumrah, with his four-over spell, were the cornerstones of the Men in Blue's victory.

However, later, Sanju Samson being the Player of the Match legitimately urged on air to give the award to Jasprit Bumrah for his one-of-a-kind spell for the night.

Sanju Samson’s Breathtaking Knock Lays The Foundation For India’s Win

For the unaware, India has become the first team to reach four consecutive ICC limited-overs tournament finals, with them also having one of the highest innings totals in T20 World Cups. However, it was achieved on the back of a brilliant batting display from the Kerala batter.

Sanju Samson opened with Abhishek Sharma, who again disappointed with a 7-ball 9, and Samson stood at the other end to bash England bowlers at a strike rate of 211.90. He punished them with 7 sixes and 8 boundaries to help India reach a mammoth total.

Ishan Kishan, who came after Abhishek, played a decent knock too with his 18-ball 39, alongside Shivam Dube, who hammered four massive sixes to score 43 off 25 balls.

While some late blitz from Hardik Pandya and Tilak Verma was also acknowledged. The main hurdle was tightened up by Bumrah.

Samson Wants Jasprit Bumrah To Have The Man Of The Match Award

While Sanju Samson was awarded the Player of the Match, he didn't hesitate to speak out about the fact on the podium. Speaking after the match, Samson spoke about the game and how he had a calculated approach to tackle the difficult bits while standing at the other end of the crease.

“I knew I got some form going from the last game. So, it was important to continue. A big match and I had to make full use of it. I calculated my innings a bit. Got a bit lucky to start with. But I had to carry on,” Samson added.

However, Sanju Samson showed his humbleness and true devotion towards the game when he urged the presenters to give the Man of the Match award to Jasprit Bumrah instead of him.

“After the way we batted, after the way myself and Ishan batted, after that partnership, we thought 250 will be possible here. Credit goes to Bumrah. World-class bowler he is. Once in a generation bowler. This should go to him. If he hadn't bowled like that in the death overs, I wouldn't have been standing here,” Samson stated.

Why Bumrah Was So Special For The IND vs ENG Clash?

Jasprit Bumrah picked up just one wicket from his four overs and gave away 30 runs. Yet, though it sounds like an odd and not-so-successful Bumrah spell, it was one of the greatest in recent times.

England's chase started shakily with them losing three wickets inside the powerplay. However, Jacob Bethell packed the punch with the bat, with his 48-ball 105 that almost took England back into the game after they were reeling at 95 for four after 7.3 overs.

As England was looking dangerous with Bethell at strike, the required run rate was steadily coming down from the team needing 135 runs from 60 balls to them needing 61 runs from just 24 deliveries.

Bumrah Brings Control In The 18th Over

Bumrah, in his initial spells, conceded a good number of runs while being only able to pick Harry Brook earlier, yet his bowling was superbly economical on a batting heaven like Wankhede, where other bowlers like Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Shivam Dube, and Axar Patel bowled at an economy rate of over and above 10.

The most important over was the 18th over for the team. Jasprit Bumrah came in with the ball when England required 45 runs from the last three overs. 

A tacky attack from Bethell could have ruined India's chances for the final, but Bumrah took the helm firmly to concede only six runs, bowling tight lines to the batters, hence bringing the required run rate to 19.50.

After that, Hardik Pandya bagged the wicket of Sam Curran to clean up England's road for this edition of the T20 World Cup.

Also Read: India Juggernaut Roll Over England, Book T20 World Cup Final Spot vs New Zealand