Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir termed Shivam Dube’s two fours as important as Sanju Samson’s 97* in the T20 World Cup 2026 match against the West Indies. According to Gambhir, small contributions are as crucial as big knocks in a game of cricket.
India beat the West Indies by five wickets in the last Super 8 match of the T20 World Cup 2026 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday, March 1. With the win, Team India also qualified for the semifinals of the ICC event. Chasing a target of 196, Samson top-scored with 97* off 50 balls. Coming in towards the end, Dube struck two fours to finish with eight not out off four balls.
During a post-match press conference, Gambhir agreed to an observation that while Samson played a special knock, the win against the West Indies could not have been achieved without some of the smaller contributions. He commented:
“Glad you are talking about every contribution. For too many years, we have only spoken about certain contributions. This is a team sport and this will always remain one. For me, Shivam’s two boundaries are as important as Sanju’s 97 because, if he wouldn’t have hit those, probably that 97, you wouldn’t have even spoken about.
“He [Samson] played a special innings, but those small contributions actually help you win games as well,” Gambhir went on to add.
Chasing 196, India lost Hardik Pandya for 17 off 14 in the penultimate over bowled by Shamar Joseph. Dube, however, came in and eased the pressure on Samson by striking two boundaries in a space of three balls.
“Need a special effort to beat England” – Gautam Gambhir on India’s semifinal opponents
Having qualified the knockouts of the T20 World Cup 2026, Team India will now face England in the second semifinal at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on March 5. Asked about the challenge of taking on Harry Brook’s team, Gambhir admitted that the Men in Blue will need to be at their very best to get the better of England in Mumbai. He stated:
“They are a world-class team. They have got a lot of quality players as well and we all know that Wankhede is a tough venue. Hopefully, we can turn up. It’s another opportunity to do something special for the team, for the country. Hopefully, we can keep ticking all the boxes, which is going to be important because we will need a special effort to beat a quality side like England.”
India and England have clashed in the semifinals of the previous two T20 World Cup editions as well. England hammered India by 10 wickets in Adelaide in 2022, while the Men in Blue beat the Englishmen by 68 runs in Guyana in 2024.
Edited by Renin Wilben Albert