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www.desitalk.com – that’s all you need to know 27 SPORTS March 6, 2026 Cricket-Samson Guides India To T20 World Cup Semis In Nervy Win Over West Indies I ndia reached the semi-finals of the Twenty20World Cup with a five- wicket win overWest Indies in Sun- day’s decisive Super Eights match, as Sanju Samson’s unbeaten knock of 97 helped them chase down a target of 196 with four balls to spare. Defending champions India, who will play in the semis for the third straight time, will face England in Mumbai on Thursday (March 5), a day after South Africa take on New Zealand (March 4) in the first semi-final. “It means the whole world to me. Right from the day I started playing, started dreaming to play for the coun- try, I think this is the day I was waiting for,” said player-of-the-match Samson, whose 50-ball knock included four sixes and 12 boundaries. Put in to bat first, theWest Indies openers cautiously scored 45 runs in the powerplay, after Abhishek Sharma dropped Roston Chase at cover. Shai Hope (32) failed to judge Varun Cha- karavarthy’s googly and got bowled in the ninth over. Shimron Hetmyer, in at three, scored a quick 27 but Jasprit Bumrah (2-36) got him caught behind, before dismissing Chase (40) two balls later, with Suryaku- mar Yadav diving at a difficult angle to take an airborne catch. When Sherfane Rutherford fell in the 15th over, West Indies were at 119-4, but Rovman Powell hit Arshdeep Singh for two sixes and a four to score 24 runs in the next over, regaining the momentum. Powell (34) and Jason Holder (37) put up a rapid 76-run partnership for the fifth wicket to reach 195-4, far above the highest successful run chase in a T20 international at Eden Gardens, which India pulled off in 2022 whenWest In- dies set a target of 158. SAMSON STEERS SHAKY INDIA TO VICTORY In reply, India lost opener Sharma early to Akeal Hosein, the spinner who had replacedWest Indies opener Bran- don King. Ishan Kishan fell to Holder nine balls later, leaving them at 41-2. With the required run rate at double digits, Samson kept the runs flowing, hitting three sixes and four boundaries to complete his half-century in 28 balls. India shrugged off the loss of cap- tain Suryakumar (18), as Tilak Varma hit Shamar Joseph for three successive fours and belted Chase down long on to get them within 60 runs of victory with six overs left. Varma (27) and Hardik Pandya (17) fell as the game neared a nervy finish, before Shivam Dube hit Joseph for two quick boundaries to leave India just seven runs to get in the last over to pull off the highest successful run chase in the tournament. Samson hit Romario Shepherd for six over square leg and hit a four down mid- on to bring up the winning runs, getting the highest individual score by an Indian in a T20World Cup chase, surpassing Vi- rat Kohli’s knocks of 82 against Australia and Pakistan. “All his hard work, what he’s been doing behind the doors when he hasn’t been playing, he’s got the fruits for it at the perfect stage,” said Suryakumar about Samson. -Reuters Badminton-India’s Sindhu Returns Home From Dubai Ordeal, Withdraws From All England Open P V Sindhu has returned to India after be- ing stranded at Dubai airport on her way to the All England Open, with the Bad- mintonWorld Federation (BWF) saying on Tuesday (March 3) the former world cham- pion had withdrawn from the tournament. Global air travel remained heavily disrupted on Sunday as war in Iran kept major Middle Eastern airports including Dubai, the world’s busiest international hub, closed for a second day in one of the sharpest aviation shocks in recent years. Dubai Airports said flights partially resumed on Monday, mainly to repatriate stranded pas- sengers. “Back home in Bangalore and safe. The last few days have been intense and uncertain, but I’m truly grateful to be back to my house,” Sindhu wrote on X. Sindhu, a double Olympics medallist, had been scheduled to face Thailand’s Supanida Katethong in the first round but has now been replaced by Taiwan’s HsuWen-chi. The BWF said Thai third seeds Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Supissara Paewsampran were also forced to withdraw from the mixed doubles. Sindhu also thanked the authorities in Dubai before adding: “For now, it’s time to rest, reset, and figure out the next steps.” Israel broadened its campaign with new strikes on Iran and Hezbollah, while Tehran launched missiles and drones toward Israel, several Gulf states and a British air base in Cyprus, raising concerns of a prolonged conflict. -R euters PHOTOS:REUTERS/HAMAD I MOHAMMED/ FILE PHOTO Paris 2024 Olympics – Badminton – Women’s Singles Group play stage – Porte de La Chapelle Arena, Paris, France – July 31, 2024. V. Sindhu Pusarla of India thanks the crowd after winning the Group M match against Kristin Kuuba of Estonia. PHOTO:REUTERS/SAHIBA CHAWDHARY Cricket – ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 – Super 8 – India v West Indies – Eden Gardens, Kolkata, India – March 1, 2026 India’s Sanju Samson celebrates after the match. Cricket – ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 – Super 8 – India v West Indies – Eden Gardens, Kolkata, India – March 1, 2026 West Indies’ Rovman Powell and Jason Holder celebrate at the end of the innings.