India outplayed us, said England captain Jos Buttler. / X/@T20WorldCup

In a superb display of team effort, India set up its summit clash with South Africa for the coveted T20 World Cup Trophy. India defeated defending champions England convincingly by 68 runs with 20 balls to spare to end its decade-long wait for a T20 World Cup final. India was the winner of the inaugural edition in 2007.

India also avenged its 2022 semi-final defeat at the hands of England.

Helped by batters to put up a challenging target of 172 for an outright winner, Indian bowlers, especially spinners – Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav – did more than expected of them. England were sent packing for 103. Reliable Jasprit Bumrah chipped in with two for 12. He claimed the first and the last wicket of England in a game dominated by India.

Skipper Rohit Sharma led from the front scoring a brisk fifty while Surya Kumar Yadav (47) and Hardik Pandya (23) came in with useful contributions in a game that was disrupted by rain.

But for skipper Jos Buttler (23 made from 15 balls with four boundaries), Harry Brook 25 from 19 balls with three boundaries) and Jofra Archer (21 from 15 balls with a boundary and two sixes), other English batters wilted the Indian bowling attack and went back to the pavilion without putting up any worthwhile resistance.

Incidentally, both the semi-finals were a disappointment for the spectators as the fireworks expected of games of this level were conspicuous by their absence. How dominant Indian bowling was can be judged that except for Jofra Archer’s two big hits to the maximum, no other English batter had a six to his credit.

Statistics make cricket an interesting game. Before the start of the second semi-final, lots of statistics came to mind, including that the same two teams met in the semi-finals of the 2022 T20 World Cup as well. India was beaten by 10 wickets. Skipper Rohit Sharma was eager to bury the ghosts of the past and move one step closer to the silverware. It was also the time for India to add an ICC Trophy to its cabinet.

Besides, it was also slated to be a battle of tactics, nerves and skills as both teams had high stakes in the game. England wanted to break the jinx of winning the T20 World Cup back-to-back while India wanted to add an ICC Trophy to its cabinet.

In 2022, India had set up a target of 168 for England. England achieved it without losing a wicket. This time, things were different. Indian spinners were quick to get in the groove. Axar Patel with his variation and accuracy had the English batters tied in his web. His three-wicket haul came in 2.1 overs for 11 runs. It was he and Kuldeep Yadav who brought England to the defensive. Kuldeep Yadav clean bowler dangerous looking Harry Brooks to make England 68 for six. Brooks was gone for 25 made from 19 balls. He was the second victim of Kuldeep who had earlier sent back Sam Curran for 2, trapping him leg before.

Kuldeep gave yet another blow to England as he foxed Chris Jordan with his flight and variation. Chris had the ball wrapped in his pads. After the ground umpire, he sought review before marching back to the pavilion. England was now in dire straits having lost seven wickets for 71. It was Kuldeep Yadav’s third wicket. Both Axar (three for 26) and Kuldeep not only justified the confidence the skipper Rohit Sharma placed in them but also wreaked havoc with the English batters. England 73 for seven in 13 overs. What a game!

Looking back, no team has won the T20 World Cup back-to-back. Joss Buttler, however, was keen to reverse the trend.

As statistics show, both Rohit Sharma and Joss Buttler had scored the same number of runs in this marquee event. In six innings each played so far, both skippers have scored 191 runs each with the same strike rate of 159.16. This semi-final was interesting for them as it would have determined which one of them would fire and set the tone for the other. Rohit did. He out-batted Joss Buttler.

About Guyana National Stadium, the venue, experts felt that the pitch would be low and skiddy, promising an average score of 167, depending further upon what captains decide after winning the toss. Intermittent showers not only delayed the start but also disrupted the game when India went to bat. India crossed this mark by finishing with 171 for seven thus setting a challenging total of 172 for the defending champions for a place in the summit round.

Rohit Sharma and Virat started well, scoring 19 for the opening wicket before Kohli, after hitting Reece Topley for the maximum, was clean bowled for nine made from as many balls. Many expected after that mighty six that Virat Kohli would now fire as he is known to be a man of big matches. It was, however, not his day as he left quickly afterwards.

Wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh, who came next, did not last long and departed when the total reached 40. He made 4, his lowest in this tournament.

Surya Kumar Yadav, who joined Rohit Sharma, signalled his arrival with a towering six of Chris Jordan as India moved to 65 for two in 8 overs before the rain stopped the game again. Rohit was on 37 and Surya Kumar on 13. Though the rain stopped after a while, it left a huge accumulation of water on the covers. The ground staff took upon itself the job of cleaning water from covers before attempting to work on the wet patches in the outfield.

When the game resumed after a long break, England pressed into action its spinners – Liam Livingstone and Adil Rashid. Rohit Sharma pulled the last ball of the 11th over long on for a mighty six to move inches closer to his 50. India was 86 for two with Rohit on 48. In the next over, Rohit and Surya Kumar completed their 50-run partnership for the third wicket.

Joss Buttler brought back Sam Curran into the attack. He was greeted with a huge six by Surya Kumar Yadav. It was useful over as it not only saw the completion of 50 by Rohit Sharma but also 100 of the Indian total on the scoreboard. Rohit celebrated with another mighty hit to the maximum before Surya Kumar executed a brilliant stroke for a boundary to make 19 from the over and take the Indian total to 110 for 2 in 13 overs.

Rohit left shortly afterwards when he was clean bowled by Adil Rashid for 57 made from 39 balls. India had reached 113 for 3 in 13.4 overs. Rohit hit six boundaries and two sixes. Adil completed his spell conceding 25 runs for the prize wicket of Rohit Sharma in his four overs.

Surya Kumar was unlucky to miss his half-century as he was caught by Chris Jordan off Jofra Archer. Surya made 47 and India were 124 for 4 from 15.4 overs. He and Rohit had put on 73 runs for the third wicket. The next man, Ravindra Jadeja, in the company of Hardik Pandya, was required to give India a safe defending total in the remaining little more than four overs. When the 17th over ended, India was 132 for four. Livingstone conceded 24 runs in his 4 overs and ended wicketless.

Hardik Pandya punished Chris Jordan when he returned to the attack for his second spell. Hardik hit him for two mighty sixes before falling into the bowler’s trap. He was caught by Sam Curran while attempting another hit to the maximum to make India 146 for 6 in 17.5 overs. Chris Jordan had the last laugh as he claimed the next Indian batter, Shivam Dube, for a blob. Shivam was caught behind by Joss Buttler. India slumped to 146 for six.

With two overs left, India was still short of its projected target of scoring 170 runs. Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja were at the crease. Jadeja hoisted India’s 150 with a well-executed boundary of Jofra Archer. He followed it with another boundary to end the over-19 with a score reading 159 for six. On the penultimate ball of the innings, Axar left but not before hitting Chris Jordan for the maximum to take India to 170. India's innings folded up at 171 for seven with Ravindra Jadeja remaining unbeaten on 17 from nine balls with two boundaries.

Chris Jordan (three for 37) was the most successful bowler for England. Three other bowlers – Reece Topley, Adil Rashid and Sam Curran - claimed one wicket each, conceding 25 runs each while Jofra Archer ended one for 33.

Jasprit Bumrah in his pre-match comments said that expectations were high from both the teams. Since India has played a lot of ICC tournaments as a team, it was confident of a good showing here. More than focussing on the outside noises, “We are going to be in the present. You can control only the controllable. It is important to put the best foot forward. The wicket is crucial and there are lot of variables which must be considered as well.”

While the rain was playing hide and seek, the South Africans, celebrating their maiden entry into the T20 World Cup, must be watching the developments amusingly. Men from the “Rainbow Nation” packed too many surprises for the Afghans, who took the world by storm by making their maiden entry into the semi-finals but lacked the energy. Confidence alone did not carry them through against experienced Proteas as the first semi-final turned out to be a damp squib and ended in almost half of the stipulated requirement of 40 overs.