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India's pace-bowling spearhead Jasprit Bumrah was the pick of the bowlers in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 virtual quarterfinal clash at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, on March 1. After India's five-wicket win to reach the semifinals, Bumrah was asked about the turning point of the game. He picked Shivam Dube's two boundaries in the penultimate over after Hardik Pandya's wicket as the turning point as India needed just seven runs in the final over.
"You know, obviously, the two fours that Dube hit, it is in the cricketing books and stats, nobody will really appreciate that, but the people who really know cricket, the two fours really didn't set the pressure on us because sometimes 8-9 runs in the last over, it can get tricky sometimes," Bumrah told the ICC.
While Bumrah lauded Dube’s cameo, he reserved praise for Sanju Samson who remained unbeaten for 50-ball 97, ensuring the run chase isn’t derailed despite wickets at regular intervals. Bumrah talked about how tough it was for Samson to come off the bench and get back into the groove straightaway.
"Unreal. I'm really happy for him because, you know in the recent last month he's had a little bit of an up and down journey. To keep a good mindset, sometimes being in and out, it can be difficult for you as a cricketer. You want stability, you can sometimes question yourself, but come this day with the conviction that he had, he was absolutely clear, really, really, happy for him, top knock. Hopefully, he continues to do this and goes from strength to strength," the 32-year-old said.
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Bumrah on using variations
Earlier, after Suryakumar brought Bumrah back into the attack in the 12th over. He delivered with Shimron Hetmyer and Roston Chase's wicket in the same over. He talked about how important it was to use variation on a batting-friendly wicket.
"The wicket was holding up so we wanted to use our variation, we did not want to bowl too fast because that was an easy option. Hit our back of length, use our change of pace, so we wanted to make run scoring as difficult as possible, and today was a good day where I got some wickets," he explained.
Bumrah’s T20I record vs England
India will go up against England in the semifinal at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. From five T20Is, Bumrah has nine wickets at an average of 9.11. His economy rate against English is 5.34 runs per over.
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