Two acts of sporting greatness deflated England and revealed India’s desperation to win.
The target of 254 demanded English captain Harry Brook do what he does. The flat pancake at Wankhede demanded do what he does. But ensured he didn’t have to do it alone — with an act of athleticism that will be recalled for ages, the kind that embeds itself straight into viral reels. Unbelievably, he would better it when the chase tightened with another breathtaking effort. On a night when batsmen from both teams repeatedly hit high notes, Axar delivered a match-winning performance with his hands, feet, and eyes. Despite scoring 253 India won by just 7 runs.
Before Flying Axar and Brainy Bumrah, was Sanju Samson who set up the game with a 42-ball 89 — an innings of grace, maturity, and inspiration. It still might not have been enough. Jacob Bethell conjured an impeccable knock — startlingly assured shot selections, purposeful targeting of bowlers, and a calmness that smoothed all that aggression. It needed repeated interventions by Axar and Bumrah to keep Bethell just out of reach of a dreamy finish.
Let’s rewind to the first moment of Axar-Bumrah. Introduced in the fifth over, Bumrah right away went for his doorknob twist. The ball peeled out of his hand slowly, landed on a length, and straightened. Bumrah can get that ball to spin in, straighten, or turn out — a degree of trickery that astounds. A flummoxed Brook flailed at it, his hands betraying his stunned state of mind, but he would still have escaped if not for Axar.
The ball had ballooned well over cover where the tall spinner was stationed. He turned in pursuit as Wankhede held its breath. The ball had gained considerable height that allowed Axar to gallop so gracefully it belied the pressure he must have been under. Eyes craned up at the ball that eventually began its descent. And when gravity sucked it down, Axar was waiting but the final arc was unpredictable as ever: the wind, the drop, and suddenly the ball wasn’t quite where Axar was.
But he did a full lunge in the end to cusp it inches off the turf, put his right hand up that held the ball — for a brief moment it seemed as though he were flexing his biceps, such was the pose — before relief swept through him and he plunged to the ground. Every Indian player rushed towards him. And perhaps it’s only in the dressing room that they’ll realise how good a slower ball it was.
But this is a World Cup semifinal, and wins rarely come easy at this stage. Bethell in particular and Will Jacks ensured India would sweat in the latter half of the chase. England were 95 for 4 in 7.3 overs that included Jos Buttler’s wicket when the pair met. The crowd had seemingly relaxed — smiles, chants of ‘India, India’, selfies being taken, and Axar’s name ringing loudest in their celebrations. Suddenly, they quietened as they realized Bethell was thinking of a heist.
A raucous 79 from 37-ball partnership had reduced the equation to 82 from 37 balls. had just bowled three outside-off wides, pressure was on when he hurled another well outside off ball and Jacks reached out for the slice. The ball seemed to bisect Axar at sweeper cover and Dube at deep backward point.
Axar blurred across to his left. The first catch was athleticism of grace. This was a manic run. He somehow reached it, stretched his arms out to grab it but now had to brake hard, with the boundary ropes just a step away. He stuttered, began to tumble, and just when it seemed he was going over the rope, he popped the ball to Dube, who pouched it and turned towards his teammates before it hit him as to what he should do first. He did what all the screaming fans around the arena wanted to do. He enveloped Axar with a huge hug.
His partner in the first act of the night, Bumrah, hammered in the final nail by bowling a gameturning 18th over, giving just 6 runs. Despite Jacks’s exit, Bethell was stubbornly dragging England towards the finish line. The game had come down to 45 from the final three when Bumrah came for his last over. He had arrived at the stumps before the umpire reached, and quietly dropped his cap on the stumps, dislodging the bails.
Three yorkers crash-landed to the base of the bat. Dot, one, one. The next yorker was a dipping full toss, nurdled for a couple of runs. Another rapid full-crasher gave away just one more run. And he nearly took out Bethell with a rapid toe-crusher that was dug out for a run. Just six runs had come, and the noose had tightened on England. He knew they would have expected a slower ball, but he never turned the doorknob on them.
And the door shut further on England next over when removed Sam Curran with a dipping full toss that was chipped to deep midwicket. And it banged firmly on them in the final over, where needing an improbable 30 to win, Bethell ran himself out. He had slammed the first ball from Dube to left of Hardik Pandya at long-on and he hesitated a touch on the possibility of the second run. And by the time he decided to press ahead, it was a touch late and couldn’t beat the throw. There he lay sprawled on the ground in disappointment. All around him rang out cries of joy.
India were through to the World Cup final.
