The cricketing world hailed white‑ball powerhouse India as they etched their name deeper into history with a third men’s Twenty20 World Cup cricket title on Sunday, defeating New Zealand by 96 runs in Ahmedabad.
Opener Sanju Samson continued his prolific run with a third successive 80‑plus score, earning him the player of the tournament award, while pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah delivered a remarkable 4/15 on a flat track to claim player of the match honours.
“India’s formula is pretty simple,” former England captain Nasser Hussain said on Sky Sports.
“A batting line‑up full of powerful hitters that will get you an above‑par score and a bowler in Bumrah, who makes a below‑par score probably enough.
“He’s an absolute genius, and when you combine those two elements, they’re virtually unbeatable.”
Fellow Sky Sports pundit and former England cricketer Michael Atherton said India were worthy champions.
“India are more than a pre-eminent T20 side. They are the pre-eminent white-ball side at the moment,” he said.
“In the last few ICC global events before today, they have won 30 out of 32 games.
“They are the strongest side in white-ball cricket.”
Former England captains Michael Vaughan and Kevin Pietersen also praised India’s dominance, lauding on social media the team’s sustained excellence in the format, while current and past Indian cricketers, including Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar, Harbhajan Singh and Ajinkya Rahane, took to social media to praise the team’s success.
Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar credited India’s success to structural strength and long‑term planning.
“India have proven they are thinking correctly, and they have given opportunities to the right people at the right time,” Akhtar said on the ‘tapmad’ YouTube channel.
“The speed at which India is going and the way they are investing in their system, and also the way they respect their elder generation of cricketers, is commendable.”
Meanwhile, India’s success has been powered by a deliberate move away from celebrating individual milestones, head coach Gautam Gambhir said.
Gambhir, appointed shortly after they lifted the trophy in 2024, said he set the tone early in his tenure that personal landmarks would not determine selection, and that approach helped India commit fully to a dominant style under captain Yadav.
“My simple philosophy with Surya has always been that milestones don’t matter. It’s the trophies that matter,” Gambhir told reporters.
“For too long in Indian cricket, we’ve spoken about milestones. And I hope that till I’m there, we’re not going to talk about milestones.”
He pointed to opener Samson’s run of form as an example of the team’s evolving mindset.
“Sanju made 97 not out (against West Indies). Imagine if he had been playing for a milestone, probably we wouldn’t have got 250,” Gambhir said.
“Stop celebrating milestones. Celebrate trophies. That is going to be important because the bigger purpose of a team sport is to win trophies, not scoring individual goals.”
He also praised Suryakumar’s brand of leadership.
“Surya has made my life a lot easier in this format. I think he’s a phenomenal leader. He very rightly mentioned that he doesn’t want to be called a captain, he wants to be called a leader,” Gambhir said.
“Because a leader is a far bigger figure in a dressing room than a captain.”
With India now holding three T20 World Cup titles, Yadav said the side would definitely aim to chase gold at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, when they will also target another T20 World Cup crown. - Karan Prashant
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