France captain Kylian Mbappe etched his name into FIFA World Cup history after becoming the first footballer to score 20 World Cup goals before the age of 30 during France’s 2-0 quarter-final victory over Morocco in Boston.

Mbappe broke the deadlock in the second half with his eighth goal of the ongoing tournament. The strike also saw him draw level with Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot while reaching a milestone never previously achieved in World Cup history.

According to the available records, Messi is the only other player to have reached the 20-goal mark at the FIFA World Cup, having scored 21 goals in the competition.

Mbappe recovers after first-half penalty miss

The France skipper had an opportunity to score earlier in the match after winning a penalty following a challenge from Noussair Mazraoui. However, Moroccan goalkeeper Yassine Bounou denied him from the spot.

The penalty award sparked debate as television replays appeared to indicate that Mbappe had gone to ground before any contact from Mazraoui.

Despite the setback, Mbappe responded in the second half by opening the scoring and later set up France’s second goal, which was finished by reigning Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele.

France march into World Cup semi-finals

Mbappe was substituted in the 76th minute after appearing to experience some discomfort, with head coach Didier Deschamps deciding not to take any risks.

France’s victory sends Les Bleus into the FIFA World Cup 2026 semi-finals, where they will take on either Spain or Belgium in Dallas next Tuesday.

The 2018 world champions and 2022 runners-up remain on course for a third successive World Cup final under Deschamps, who is overseeing his final World Cup campaign as France coach.

Morocco, playing without injured Ismael Saibari, struggled to create enough attacking opportunities as France controlled the contest to seal another place in the last four.

Mbappe once again underlined his reputation as one of football’s leading goal-scorers, adding another historic achievement to his World Cup career.

Former India captain and ex-head coach Anil Kumble has strongly criticised India’s performance following their crushing 125-run defeat to England in the third T20I, describing the display as an “abject surrender” by the Shreyas Iyer-led side.

India were bowled out for just 76 while chasing, suffering one of their heaviest defeats in T20Is. The result also left them without a win in the five-match series at that stage, meaning they could only level the contest by winning the remaining two matches.

Reacting to the defeat, Kumble questioned the batting approach and said the players failed to show the patience required under pressure.

“It was an abject surrender by the Indian team. You don’t expect a world champion side to cave in like that,” Kumble said on JioHotStar.

He added that although the required run rate was above 10 an over, one of the batters needed to anchor the innings instead of everyone opting for an attacking approach.

“The Indian batters needed to show more patience and application, but everyone just tried to attack instead of absorbing the pressure. Yes, the required rate was over 10, but someone had to take responsibility and bat deep. Instead, they went the aggressive route and paid the price with a batting collapse,” he said.

Kumble questions batting order decision

The former India skipper also criticised the team management’s decision to promote Harshit Rana ahead of Shivam Dube during the run chase.

According to Kumble, India should have backed one of their established batters instead of sending a lower-order player into a difficult situation.

“In T20 cricket, you put your best batters up front. Sending out Harshit Rana to bat ahead of a more complete batter like Shivam Dube was wrong. You can’t expect a number eight guy to win you a game by sending him to bat ahead of a proven guy. That’s not how things work in modern-day cricket,” he said.

Calls for consistency in bowling selection

Kumble also expressed concern over India’s frequent changes to the bowling attack, saying constant chopping and changing could affect players’ confidence.

He pointed out that Prasidh Krishna was dropped after one poor outing against Ireland, while Prince Yadav impressed with three wickets in the second T20I but still found himself in a side that lost the match.

“The Indian team has made too many changes to its lineup, and that needs to stop. The bowlers keep changing. Prasidh Krishna was dropped after one bad game against Ireland. Prince Yadav came in, bowled well, and picked three wickets in the second T20I, but India still lost that game. As a new captain, you need to stick with your five bowlers. Batters will score runs, but bowlers win you matches,” Kumble said.

He further stressed the importance of backing players through difficult phases rather than dropping them after isolated failures.

“When you pick players, you need to keep backing them. Ups and downs are part and parcel of life. They keep happening, but that doesn’t mean failures end up with you getting dropped from the squad,” he added.

India captain Shreyas Iyer did not hold back while assessing his team’s performance after England handed the visitors their biggest-ever defeat by runs in T20 Internationals. Following the crushing 125-run loss at Trent Bridge, Iyer described India’s display as “atrocious” and admitted the team failed to execute its plans in all departments.

England posted a competitive 201/7 before dismantling India’s batting line-up, bowling them out for just 76 in 11.4 overs to move 2-0 ahead in the five-match T20I series after the opening game was washed out.

India register their heaviest T20 defeat

Chasing 202, India struggled from the outset against England’s pace attack. Jofra Archer and Josh Tongue consistently generated high pace and troubled the top order with the new ball.

Tongue produced career-best figures of 4/28, while Archer picked up 3/29 as India were bundled out for their second-lowest T20I total. The defeat surpassed India’s previous biggest T20 loss by runs, an 80-run defeat against New Zealand in 2019.

The result also came after India suffered a 2-0 T20I series defeat against Ireland last month.

Iyer admits India’s execution was poor

Speaking after the match, Iyer criticised his team’s overall approach and execution.

“It was atrocious. I can’t use a better word. Losing by such a big margin isn’t acceptable,” the India skipper said.

He acknowledged that England’s bowlers exploited the surface effectively but admitted India failed to respond.

According to Iyer, the batting unit could not build partnerships or establish a clear approach during the chase, leading to a rapid collapse.

England dominate with bat and ball

Earlier in the evening, Phil Salt anchored England’s innings with a well-made 70 after Jos Buttler had provided an aggressive start with 36. Salt accelerated after a cautious beginning, reaching his half-century in 36 deliveries, while Sam Curran remained unbeaten on 41 to help England cross the 200-run mark.

England captain Harry Brook praised Salt’s contribution and credited the bowlers for executing simple but effective plans with the new ball.

India’s innings never recovered after early wickets. Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Ishan Kishan all departed cheaply before Archer dismissed both Iyer and Axar Patel to leave the visitors reeling. Will Jacks, Adil Rashid and Tongue shared the remaining wickets as England completed a comprehensive victory.

India look to bounce back in fourth T20I

Despite the heavy defeat, Iyer urged his teammates to move on quickly and focus on the remaining matches.

He said the team had played poor cricket but viewed the next game as an opportunity to respond positively and learn from the mistakes made in Nottingham.

England can seal the series with another victory in the fourth T20I at Bristol.