Sanju Samson made 321 runs in five innings in T20 World Cup 2026.
India defeated New Zealand in the final of the T20 World Cup 2026 on March 8 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. The victory secured India’s third T20 World Cup title, taking them past England and West Indies, who have won the tournament twice each.
After being asked to bat first, India began with Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson at the top. Abhishek made 52 in 21 balls, and Ishan Kishan slammed 54 in 25 balls. Samson continued his good form, hitting 89 with 8 sixes and 5 fours, while Shivam Dube’s 8-ball 26* took India to 255/5 in 20 overs.
Time Seifert led the New Zealand reply with 52, while Mitchell Santner made 43 in a losing cause. Axar Patel picked 3/27, removing the dangerous Finn Allen and Glenn Phillips, along with Daryl Mitchell.
But it was Jasprit Bumrah, who took 4/15 and rushed the New Zealand innings to an end, as they finished with 159 in 19 overs. Jasprit Bumrah won the Player of the Match, and Sanju Samson won the Player of the Tournament.
The innings soon wrapped up as Jasprit Bumrah dismissed Neesham, Santner, and Matt Henry cheaply. Abhishek Sharma also picked up a wicket to finish New Zealand’s innings at 159 in 19 overs. India won the final by 96 runs, with Bumrah taking 4/15 and Axar Patel claiming 3/27.
Sanju Samson won the Player of the Tournament, and Jasprit Bumrah won the Player of the Match.
It was an amazing journey for Samson, who was not in the India XI at the start of the tournament but made his mark with 97* against the West Indies in a must-win game. He then made 89 against England in the semis and now has made 89 against New Zealand in the final.
“Feels like a dream, actually. Very, very happy, very grateful. Out of words, out of emotions. I’m just going through it, so it feels a bit surreal. To be very honest, I think, sir, it all started one to two years before. When I was with the 2024 World Cup-winning team in the West Indies, I couldn’t play a game. I kept on visualizing. I kept on dreaming. I kept on working. This is exactly what I wanted to do then. I thought I needed to work in; I needed to put in so much work that this is exactly what I wanted to achieve. And by God’s grace, I think today things have turned around. I think right after the New Zealand series, I was broke. I was completely out of my mind. I was like, okay, my dreams have shattered. Okay, what else can I do? But God had different plans,” Samson stated at the post-match presentation.
“So, I think I’m very proud and very happy that I was courageous enough to dream about it. And actually, things have turned up so nicely for me. So, very grateful. Yes, sir. I think, to be very honest, a lot of guidance and suggestions from our senior players in the former Indian team have really reached me, and they tried to help me out,” he added.
Samson then revealed that he had been in touch with Sachin Tendulkar, the legendary Indian batter, ever since he was left out of the Indian team for the Australia tour.
“But I think from the last couple of months, I think I hope I can share it here. I think I have been in constant touch with Sachin, sir. I think so, Sachin Tendulkar sir. I think when I was outside, sitting outside in Australia, I was not playing a game. So, I thought about, okay, what is the mindset required now? So, I reached out to Sir, and I had huge, huge big conversations with him. And right yesterday also, he called me up to check how I was feeling. So, I think getting guidance from someone like him, what more can I ask for? I think that clarity, that game preparation, that game awareness, and that game sense—I think I’m very grateful for everyone who supported me,” Samson revealed.
India’s T20 World Cup 2026 win made them the first team to win the trophy three times, the first team to retain the title, and the first team to win the title as hosts.