Why India’s thrilling win over England still exposed three big concerns before T20 World Cup final

India made it to a second-straight T20 World Cup final on Thursday after beating England by seven runs in a high-scoring semi-final at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium that witnessed nearly 500 runs being scored.

Sanju Samson led the way with a brilliant 89 off 42 balls, while Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya were excellent with the ball when it mattered as India restricted England to 246/7 after posting 253/7 on the board.

The Men in Blue, however, did appear significantly weak in a few departments during the semi-final. Departments that they would hope to strengthen before the mega final against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday (8 March).

A horror outing for Varun Chakravarthy

There were concerns over Varun Chakravarthy's form heading into the all-important semi-final, with some suggesting bringing Kuldeep Yadav back into the XI. And the concerns turned out to be justified with Chakravarthy, who had been an indispensable member of the T20I unit, conceding 64 runs in four overs to finish as the most expensive bowler of the match that witnessed nearly 500 runs being scored.

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The leg-spinner was haemorrhaging runs from the word go, getting struck for a hat-trick of sixes by Jacob Bethell at the start of his first over. He somewhat made up for it by dismissing Jos Buttler in the penultimate delivery in the first over. However, the fact that he went for over 15 runs per over thereafter proved to be his undoing.

India captain Suryakumar Yadav thus will be wondering if it was a good idea for him to bowl Varun out despite getting hammered for fours and sixes every over. And heading into the final, the clamour for left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav's inclusion will be greater than ever.

Another disappointing evening for Abhishek

Abhishek has had a poor run in the 2026 T20 World Cup, barring his half-century against Zimbabwe at Chennai's MA Chidambaram Stadium. And despite the Wankhede strip witnessing nearly 500 runs being scored, 9 runs from 7 balls were all that Abhishek could manage as India lost their first wicket with just 20 on the board in the final delivery of the second over.

The left-hander did show signs of promise with a couple of fours, but fell to off-spin yet again, holing out to Phil Salt at deep midwicket in Will Jacks' first over of the evening. And though he is set to remain a first-choice opener despite his latest failure with the bat, Abhishek will be under immense pressure heading into the final.

Given his struggles against off-spinners in this tournament, New Zealand are likely to deploy all-rounder Cole McConchie against Abhishek in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium. And Abhishek could make amends for his error on Thursday by allowing Samson to take the lead against off-spin and focus on scoring off pacers.

Better communication between batters

Last but not least, India will be aiming for better communication on the ground, especially when it pertains to calls for singles or doubles. Shivam Dube, after all, was off to a fiery start after being sent in to bat ahead of Tilak Varma and Hardik Pandya and had assumed charge of the innings after Samson's departure.

And he was on the verge of bringing up a half-century when a mix-up with Pandya resulted in the left-hander getting run out on 43 off 21 balls, thanks to a superb direct hit by England captain Harry Brook at the non-striker's end.

India had lost their fifth wicket in the 18th over with Dube's run-out. Thankfully, though, they had already gone past 200 by then, and a flurry of sixes by Tilak and Pandya ensured the Men in Blue crossed the 250-mark for the second time in three games.

However, such miscommunication can prove to be game-changing in big matches, especially in the knockout stage of ICC tournaments. And on a day when things don't go India's way, the dismissal of a set batter in this manner could end up costing 15-20 runs, which in this format could be the difference between victory and defeat.