NEW DELHI: Former Pakistan pacer Mohammad Amir has come under fire on social media after his bold prediction about India backfired. Amir had earlier claimed that India will not make it to the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup. But India silenced the doubters with a commanding five-wicket win over the West Indies in Sunday’s virtual quarter-final at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. India, powered by Sanju Samson’s unbeaten 97, sealed their semi-final berth in style.But Amir has now reignited the debate with another strong statement claiming that India still won’t make it to the final.
Team India arrives in Mumbai after sealing a semi-final spot | T20 World Cup 2026
“India complete cricket nahi khel rha. India final nahi kehelega )India is not playing complete cricket. India will not play final,” Amir said.Elaborating further, he said, “My semi-final analysis was right, but Sanju Samson played really good cricket. Still, I feel that India is not playing complete cricket yet, apart from Jasprit Bumrah, not a single bowler is in form. Just look at their batting, they keep collapsing in almost every match. The semi-final against England will definitely be a good match for India, but I will not be playing the final against India.SAMSON MASTERCLASSAfter winning the toss, India opted to bowl first. West Indies openers Roston Chase (40 off 25, five fours and a six) and captain Shai Hope (32 off 33, three fours and a six) gave their team a solid start with a 68 opening partnership. However, the innings lost steam as they slipped to 119/4 in 14.1 overs, despite a quickfire 27 off 12 balls from Shimron Hetmyer.A late surge from Jason Holder (37* off 22, two fours and three sixes) and Rovman Powell (34* off 19, three fours and two sixes) saw the pair add 76 runs in just 35 balls to take West Indies to 195/4 in 20 overs.Jasprit Bumrah (2/36) was India’s most efficient bowler. Varun Chakaravarthy and Hardik Pandya picked up a wicket each and scored 40 runs apiece in their four overs.Chasing 196, India stumbled early and were 41/2 inside the powerplay. Samson leveled the innings with a 58-run stand alongside Suryakumar Yadav (18). He then built a crucial partnership with Tilak Varma (27 off 15), Hardik Pandya (17) and Shivam Dube (8*) to guide India to victory with five wickets in hand.SAMSON OVERCOMES KOHLISamson’s 97* is now the highest individual score by an Indian in the successful T20 World Cup run. He surpassed Virat Kohli’s unbeaten 82 against Australia in Mohali (2016) and Pakistan in Melbourne (2022).Across the IPL and T20Is, Samson opened the batting 29 times in run-chases and this was the first time he remained unbeaten till the end.The 196 is India’s highest in T20 World Cup history and surpassed her 173-run run against South Africa in Mirpur in 2014. With the win, India secured a record sixth semi-final in T20 World Cup history, equaling Pakistan (2007, 2009, 202021, 2007, 202021, England, 2021, England). (2010, 2016, 2021, 2022, 2024, 2026).Samson’s knock is also the second highest individual score by an Indian in T20 World Cup history, after Suresh Raina’s 101 against South Africa at Gros Islet in 2010.
