Suryakumar Yadav makes his feelings clear after Sanju Samson picked over Jasprit Bumrah for Player-of-the-Match honour

Suryakumar Yadav had his say after Sanju Samson beat Jasprit Bumrah to win the Player of the Match accolade in the semi-final.

India and England put on quite the show in the second T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday. Fans got their money's worth after the run-fest saw India prevailing over the 2022 champions by seven runs to enter the final and set up a summit clash against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday. Not many would have expected England to show the kind of fight they did after being hit for 253 runs, but Jacob Bethell’s maiden T20I century gave India a real scare, threatening to take the game away from them.

Suryakumar Yadav reacted after Sanju Samson scored 89 runs and Jasprit Bumrah gave away just 33. (AFP)

Sanju Samson won the Player of the Match award, but it could have very well gone to Jasprit Bumrah. Samson played an 89-run knock, but it was Bumrah who brought India back into the contest. On a pitch where every bowler was taken to task, the India pacer gave away just 33 runs in four overs, picking up the wicket of England captain Harry Brook.

After winning Player of the Match for the second game in a row, Samson admitted he wouldn’t have minded if Bumrah had won the accolade, as it was his death-overs spell that truly took the game away from England.

When asked about this remark by Samson at the post-match presentation, India captain Suryakumar Yadav said, “Absolutely. I mean, you know how capable he is, what he has done over the years for India.”

“And he did the same thing today. Raised his hand again, showed character, pulled the game away from them. And I think it was a special bowling performance,” he added.

Bumrah’s four-over spell was truly exceptional, and a testament to his brilliance was the fact that he went for just 8.5 runs per over on a pitch where every batter made merry, hitting boundaries and sixes for fun.

Sanju Samson special

Earlier, Harry Brook won the toss and opted to bowl. Samson made full use of an early reprieve when Brook dropped a sitter at mid-on. The right-handed batter went on to score big, setting up India's innings.

Speaking about Samson, Suryakumar said, “He knew what he wanted to do as soon as he went in to bat. Even when the wicket fell, he knew the wicket was good, so he kept pressing the pedal. And the way he batted, I think the team required that from him. It was all due from all last year, all the hard work he was doing, and it was a special knock today.”