India news: India set England towering T20 target of 253

Mark Hallam | Mahima Kapoor with AP, AFP, Reuters

Published 03/05/2026Published March 5, 2026

The T20 World Cup semifinal is underway in Mumbai and the hosts have hit England for an imposing 253 runs. Meanwhile, Finland's Alexander Stubb is in Delhi and polls have closed in neighboring Nepal. DW has more.

https://p.dw.com/p/59oqx

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Skip next section What you need to know

What you need to know

Sanju Samson hits 89 for India as the hosts set huge target for England to chase

New Delhi to host global diplomats for Raisina Dialogue 2026

Indian MEA yet to comment on Iranian warship sunk in Indian Ocean

PM Modi and Finnish President Alexander Stubb meet in Delhi, discuss Iran

Here's what was making headlines in India on Thursday, March 5:

Skip next section England not totally out of touch thanks to Bethell's big innings

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

England not totally out of touch thanks to Bethell's big innings

Challenging as the Indian target looked, this game isn't over quite yet.

That's thanks in very large part to Jacob Bethell. His 84 unbeaten runs off 40 balls constitute nearly half of England's entire total.

Will Jacks had proved a reliable and longer-lived partner for Bethell, at least for 20 balls, until he fell with 35 runs on the board.

Another all-rounder, left-hander Sam Curran has now joined the fray.

England still need 56 runs, in just 20 balls, and have lost five of their strongest batsmen. But nevertheless, it's looking marginally less hopeless than one might have expected.

https://p.dw.com/p/59sYG

Skip next section Indian fighter aircraft missing from radar contact, search initiated

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

Indian fighter aircraft missing from radar contact, search initiated

Yes, there is also news beyond cricket.

An Indian military aircraft is missing from radar contact. It's a Russian-designed SU-30 MKI that's made under license in India.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) said that a search and rescue mission had been initiated, with the plane "reported overdue."

"The aircraft had taken off from Jorhat, Assam, and was last in contact at 7:42 p.m.," the IAF said. "Further details are being ascertained."

https://p.dw.com/p/59sXd

Skip next section Bethell and Banton go for broke — briefly

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

Bethell and Banton go for broke — briefly

England picked up their scoring rate after drinks as Jacob Bethell and Tom Banton threw caution to the wind, going for repeated sixes and risking an edge or a catch.

But after Banton had smashed 17 runs off just five deliveries, the aggression came back to bite him.

A slower delivery from Axar Patel made Banton mistime an attempted sweep shot, with the ball sneaking straight through and hitting his stumps.

Bethell, who's hit five sixes already, has made a rapid half century. He's now partnered by all rounder Will Jacks, who just found the boundary a couple of times to score his first runs.

England were 134 runs short of the target half-way through the innings.

https://p.dw.com/p/59sTw

Skip next section Salt falls early, captain Brook and keeper Buttler follow soon after

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

Salt falls early, captain Brook and keeper Buttler follow soon after

Hardik Pandya's first over with the ball could not have gone better for India.

He gave up just one run in all six balls, and he took the wicket of Phil Salt, who had just 5 runs on the board.

Salt tried to knock Pandya's first delivery into the crowd but he edged it skyward instead, and Axar Patel made no mistake gathering up the catch.

England made some more progress before star Indian bowler Jasprit Bumrah joined the attack. He immediately claimed the scalp of captain Harry Brook for just 7 runs.

Jacob Bethell came in for the dismissed skipper and smashed a pair of sixes into the stands.

But before the end of the sixth over, Jos Buttler fell as well for 25. The guests have scored 64/3 at drinks after six overs, well short of the run rate with three of their most dangerous batters already dismissed.

https://p.dw.com/p/59sMm

Skip next section England's Salt and Buttler look to hit hard early

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

England's Salt and Buttler look to hit hard early

Operation "nothing to lose" can begin!

England's openers Phil Salt and Jos Buttler have faced their first few balls and they might as well look to do as much early damage as possible. Conservative scoring will not be enough.

In that spirit, they took an impressive 13 off the first over, including three boundaries. But that is more or less exactly the run rate they will need to maintain throughout the innings.

https://p.dw.com/p/59sHL

Skip next section India final score: 253/7; England need more than 12 per over

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

India final score: 253/7; England need more than 12 per over

That innings was more or less textbook from the hosts' perspective.

India have set a towering target for England to chase and only a monumental performance with the bat would ruin the day of what must be an ecstatic home crowd at present.

Without question Sanju Samson's 89 was the highlight of the innings, but Ishan Kishan, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya and Tilak Varma all played meaningful roles with the bat to build the overall score.

England's bowling attack had a pretty miserable outing across the board. Nobody took more than two wickets, everybody was hit for a minimum of 10 runs per over.

The teams are taking their break now and England's innnings should start soon.

https://p.dw.com/p/59s56

Skip next section India pass 200 mark, despite early exit for Sadav

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

India pass 200 mark, despite early exit for Sadav

We're entering the last two overs and now's the time for the hosts to throw caution to the wind.

Captain Yadav only managed 11 before he was stumped out, as Adil Rashid claimed his second wicket in his fourth and final permitted over bowling.

Shivam Dube has got his eye in nicely and had 43 runs to his name by the time he was run out going for a risky score.

Hardi Pandya has since taken to the field, and he's already found the boundary once with three fours, including the once that put India past 200 runs in total.

Tilak Varma has joined him since Dube's dismissal and is swinging for the fences. He's smacked three sixes out of the ground already for a rapid 21.

https://p.dw.com/p/59s4F

Skip next section Samson finally falls after mighty 89

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

Samson finally falls after mighty 89

He hit 97 not out against the West Indies, and has now managed another 89 against England, putting India in pole position at this stage.

Samson fell in the same way as his opening partner Sharma: caught by Phil Salt off a delivery from Will Jacks.

With the exception of Jacks, who's taken two wickets at a cost of 19 runs, none of England's bowlers have exactly flourished so far. But Liam Dawson, Sam Curran and Jofra Archer in particular have been leaking runs, giving up two or more runs per ball on average.

India stand on 170/3 and still have six overs to bolster that score. Shivam Dube and captain Suryakumar Yadav are at bat.

https://p.dw.com/p/59rwr

Skip next section Samson reaches his half century within 8 overs

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

Samson reaches his half century within 8 overs

India are keeping the scoreboard ticking along nicely, thanks in large part to Sanju Samson.

He'd scored 74 of India's 126 runs after 36 deliveries, notching a rapid half century.

We've just past the half-way stage in the meantime.

The hosts still have eight wickets to spare and so should be able to start turning up the intensity and taking more risks soon, possibly further increasing their run rate.

Ishan Kishan built a decent partnership with Sanju as he notched a rapid 39. But he was caught out midway through the tenth over.

https://p.dw.com/p/59rkM

Skip next section England win toss and chose to bowl, India's Yadav unperturbed

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

England win toss and chose to bowl, India's Yadav unperturbed

The hosts and defending champions will set a target for England to chase. Captain Harry Brook put India in to bat after winning the toss.

India's captain Suryakumar Yadav said he'd hoped to bat first anyway and so was happy with the outcome.

Abhishek Sharma and wicket keeper Sanju Samson, the hero with the bat in India's last game against the West Indies, are the first to take the field, giving India left-handed and right-handed firepower from the start.

Samson starts in fine form, knocking Jofra Archer for a total of 11 runs, a four, a six, a single, before another quick single from Sharma to close out the first over.

An early blow followed for India in the second over, however. Sharma tried to send a delivery from Will Jacks airborne but got underneath it, and Phil Salt took a relatively simple catch, dismissing Sharma for 9 runs.

Samson, who breathed a sigh of relief when captain Brook dropped a simple catch in the third over, is continuing to knock England's bowlers around at a handy pace. He's scored 31 off his first 15 deliveries, with six boundaries already.

https://p.dw.com/p/59rEY

Skip next section Polls close in Nepal, first 'trends' expected on Friday

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

Polls close in Nepal, first 'trends' expected on Friday

Wesley Dockery Editor

Polls in Nepal's general election following widespread youth protests closed at 5 p.m. local time, with the counting process set to start soon after.

Election commission officials said that early trends were likely to emerge on Friday, but also warned that final results could take up to a week.

As of 3 p.m., with two hours of voting remaining, around half of the country's 19 million eligible voters had cast ballots.

"We will work out the final tally of votes cast after the voting closes," Narayan Prasad Bhattarai, election commission spokesperson said. "As of now in most of the districts voters' turnout is more than 50%."

In the last election in 2022, final turnout was 61%.

The 275 members of parliament will be elected through a mixed electoral system different from but not entirely disimilar to Germany's. First-past-the-post races will decide who takes up 165 of the seats, while the other 110 will be allocated based on proportional representation.

https://p.dw.com/p/59rAG

Skip next section DW baton passed from Delhi to Bonn

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

DW baton passed from Delhi to Bonn

Mahima's reached the end of her working day in Delhi and is off for a well-earned bite of dinner and evening to herself.

This means (with copious apologies for the impropriety!) that an Englishman based in Bonn will be accompanying you through the big game in Mumbai in a few minutes.

https://p.dw.com/p/59r44

Skip next section Indian embassy in UAE: 'avoid unnecessary travel'

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

Indian embassy in UAE: 'avoid unnecessary travel'

The Indian embassy in Abu Dhabi has released an advisory for the Indian community in the region, requesting them to "avoid unnecessary travel" and "remain vigilant" as Iranian strikes are reported around the region.

Hundreds of thousands of Indians live and work in the UAE, with many scrambling to return to India amid Iran's attacks.

Valsa, an Indian passport holder, has been scrambling to return to India without luck. "I was visiting family when the war broke out and now I'm stuck," she told DW with a request to refrain from using her last name.

For the first two days of the attacks, Valsa and her family retreated to their apartment's store room, which was the only room in the house without windows. "Even now, we can hear jets zoom by the building every few minutes, it's surreal," she said.

Valsa and a few other Indians stranded in the region told DW that they had been on hold with commercial airlines for hours, scrambling to find a way back.

https://p.dw.com/p/59qvQ

Skip next section T20 semifinals: India, England to clash in Mumbai

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

T20 semifinals: India, England to clash in Mumbai

T20 reigning World Cup champions and co-hosts India will take on England today at 7 p.m. IST (13:30 GMT) in Mumbai's iconic Wankhede Stadium.

Fun fact: This is the third T20 World Cup in a row that England will have played India in the semi finals. Each time, the winners of this match went on to lift the trophy.

Thursday's match will be played in a humid atmosphere with the stadium a stone's throw from the Arabian Sea, temperatures in the mid-30s Celsius range, amid some 35,000 roaring fans.

Hundreds of millions of others are expected to join in on TV and streaming websites, across the cricket obsessed nation.

English cricketer Harry Books conceded that India were the favortites to win the T20 World Cup on home soil. However he warned that England's "perfect performance" was just around the corner.

"It's a dream come true for most of us to play in a World Cup semi-final against the home nation on a very iconic ground," the England captain told reporters at the Wankhede stadium, minutes before his side's final training session ahead of the semi-final.

The winner of Thursday's game will face New Zealand in the final on Sunday, after Finn Allen's magical century secured a resounding victory over South Africa for the Kiwis in yesterday's semifinal in Kolkata.

For me, who's more a Bollywood fan than a cricket one, every England versus India match is a reminder of the 2001 Oscar-nominated movie 'Lagaan'. The Indian classic has a team of Indian villagers play a cricket tournament against British colonizers over pending land tax.

https://p.dw.com/p/59qUy

Skip next section Iran conflict has reached India's backyard, says opposition leader

03/05/2026March 5, 2026

Iran conflict has reached India's backyard, says opposition leader

Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi criticized the Indian government for its silence on the Iranian warship that was destroyed by the US in the Indian Ocean after leaving exercises in an Indian port.

"The conflict has reached our backyard," he said on X.

Gandhi, who comes from a family of former prime ministers, is regularly critical of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his foreign policy.

In the post, Gandhi said that more than 40% of India's oil imports Transit through the Strait of Hormuz, which has been blocked by Iranian attacks. The politician warned that India's oil supplies were under threat.

India's petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri had earlier told reporters that the nation had a "comfortable" oil stockpile and it would not be affected by the logjam in the strait, at least in the short term.

https://p.dw.com/p/59q61

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