Former England captain Michael Vaughan slammed India’s move to bowl part-time medium-pacer Shivam Dube in the final over of the T20 World Cup semifinal in Mumbai on March 5. Chasing 254 for a place in the final, England reached 224/6 in 19 overs, needing 30 off the last over.
However, even with Axar Patel having an over left, skipper Suryakumar Yadav went to Dube for the final over. The move ultimately paid dividends as India won by seven runs despite Dube conceding 22 runs in the over.
Talking about the decision after the game on Cricbuzz, Vaughan said (9:43):
“They won the game, but I absolutely don’t agree with that decision. Axar Patel is a wonderful bowler who can fire in the yorkers from straight to wide. Shivam Dube’s last three overs have now gone for 68. If he bowls another over for India, India are losing the World Cup. If they have to bowl him on Sunday, they are in a bad position.”
Vaughan added:
“Things should be kept simple in cricket. When you’ve got an experienced player like Axar Patel with plenty to play with, yes, there was a left-hander on strike, but Jamie Overton was at the other end. You have to give it to your experienced bowlers.”
Dube has been extremely expensive in the ongoing T20 World Cup with an economy rate of over 14.
“It was a fair call from Surya, given the situation” – Ajinkya Rahane
Former Indian captain Ajinkya Rahane disagreed with Michael Vaughan and felt that the right move was made with Shivam Dube bowling the final over in the T20 World Cup 2026 semifinal against England. Axar had been expensive in his first three overs, conceding 35 runs with a wicket to show for.
“I thought it was a fair call from Surya given the situation. A spinner bowling the last over when two left-handers are batting can be risky. Three-four sixes could have happened with Bethell still there. Axar is a quality bowler, but the way Surya used Arshdeep, Bumrah, Hardik, and then Dube for the last over was okay,” said Rahane (via the aforementioned source).
He added:
“Axar could have bowled either the 14th, 15th, or the 16th over maximum, but after that, when 25 runs are needed, and a spinner is bowling, you never know. So I thought Shivam Dube was the best option Suryakumar Yadav had. But Shivam has been struggling since he started bowling the wider lines.”
The thrilling win took Team India to a second consecutive T20 World Cup final, where they will take on New Zealand in Ahmedabad on Sunday, March 8.
Edited by Venkatesh Ravichandran