Summary of this article
India and England will clash in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final
Both teams have a plethora of all-rounders
Check how the all-rounders can impact the semi-final below
India and England will face-off in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 second semi-final at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday (March 05). The winner of the India vs England semi-final face will clash with New Zealand in the final on March 08 as they have already made it to the summit clash by defeating South Africa in the first semi-final
Both India and England had stutters made they eventually managed to make it to the top four. England suffered a loss in the group stages to West Indies. At one point, they nearly lost against Nepal. But they recovered and eventually grew in the competition. They entered the semi-final after winning all the games in the Super 8.
India, meanwhile, looked comfortable for most part before suffering a defeat in the first Super 8 match against South Africa. Their next two matches became a battle for survival, although they won both and booked their place in the semi-final, still being one of the favourites to win the title.
Both for India and England, all-rounders have played a big role in making it to the top four. Be it Shivam Dube, Will Jacks, Sam Curran or Hardik Pandya, impact performances were delivered by them in crunch moments will eased the path of their side into the top four.
Hardik Pandya
In 7 matches played so far, Hardik has scored 165 runs with a strike rate of 162.8 and his highest score is 52, which came against Namibia. He scalped 8 wickets with an economy of 8.57.
Hardik has always been a key presence in the Indian side and this time, it was no different. His spell against Pakistan ended up being a difference maker. Although with the bat, he is yet to show his real explosiveness, his threat will be there on the England bowlers, specially the spinners when they clash in the semi-final.
Shivam Dube
Shivam Dube has been one of the in-form cricketers of Team India, specially with the bat. He has scored a total of 243 runs in the competition, but he has played important cameos which have eased pressure on India in crunch moments. Be it the Pakistan match or the Super 8 clash against West Indies, Dube's touch with the bat will assuring for Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav before facing England. He has a massive strike rate of 190.30.
He has scalped six wickets so far with an economy of 13.63 with the ball in hand and it will be an area of concern for the team.
Axar Patel
Due to the Indian team having an in-form batting line-up, Axar has barely had occasions to bat. He contributed when India had a collapse against USA and was not part of the playing XI when India were defeated by South Africa. Yet, recent records show that Axar can be very much impactful with the bat as a floater in the middle overs.
In 6 matches played so far in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, Axar has scalped 11 wickets with a bowling average of 19.82 and an economy of 8.23. He has bowled in the powerplay and read the conditions quickly to keep the batters quiet. Suryakumar Yadav will be happy having him against the right-hander heavy side of England.
Will Jacks
Jacks has been the most valuable player for England in the T20 World Cup 2026 so far. He has already equaled Shane Watson’s record for the most Player of the Match awards in a single edition of the tournament (4). Despite being slotted in an unnatural role of a finisher, Jacks has delivered performances game after game, bailing England out of pressure situations.
He has 191 runs in the competition with a massive batting average of 63.67 and a strike rate of 176.85. Not only that, but Jacks has also been equally impactful with the ball in hand. He has scalped 7 wickets with an economy of 8.04. His spell of 3/22 against Sri Lanka was a match-winning one. With India struggling consistently against off-break, Jacks can be a deciding factor.
Sam Curran
Just like Will Jacks, Sam Curran has been a consistent performer from England, specially at death. While his tournament stats haven't reached the heights of his 2022 Player of the Tournament campaign, he has remained a vital cog in England’s journey to the semi-final.
Curran was the key man for England for winning the last over thriller against Nepal. Although he has taken only six wickets, his economy rate has been only 8.45 despite bowling the difficult overs.
He has scored only 149 runs so far and the strike rate is modest too. But England will want him to use against spin in the middle overs against India, specially to neutralise the threat of Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel.
