Finn Allen blasted his way into the record books with the quickest century in T20 World Cup history, reaching the milestone in just 33 deliveries. His explosive batting helped New Zealand chase down 170 runs in only 12.5 overs, defeating South Africa in Wednesday’s T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final clash in Kolkata. Allen matched the tournament’s fastest fifty, getting there in just 19 balls, as New Zealand raced to an incredible 84/0 after six overs – setting a new T20 World Cup powerplay record. Tim Seifert contributed his own blazing 28-ball fifty, partnering with Allen for a brilliant 117-run opening partnership. Before the fireworks began, Marco Jansen had rescued South Africa with an outstanding unbeaten 55 from 30 deliveries, pushing his team to a competitive 169/8 in their full 20 overs. South Africa found themselves in deep trouble at 77/5 at one point, after New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner won the coin toss and chose to bowl first. This thrilling win sends New Zealand through to the final. Allen’s Remarkable Century Gave New Zealand A Clear Path To Final .
TOSS
New Zealand won the toss and decided to bowl first.
PLAYING XI
New Zealand (Playing XI):
Tim Seifert(w), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner(c), Cole McConchie, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson
South Africa (Playing XI):
Aiden Markram(c), Quinton de Kock(w), Ryan Rickelton, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi
SOUTH AFRICA
Mitchell Santner made the right call at the toss, and his bowling attack delivered right away on a somewhat dry pitch. Cole McConchie, brought into the squad as a late injury cover and kept in the team for tactical reasons, proved his worth brilliantly – removing both left-handed batters Quinton de Kock and Ryan Rickelton in back-to-back balls during his only over, leaving South Africa struggling at 12 for 2.
Things could have gotten worse for South Africa when Lockie Ferguson had Aiden Markram hitting a simple catch to mid-wicket, but Rachin Ravindra dropped what should have been an easy take. Markram and Dewald Brevis fought back with aggressive batting, smashing 17 runs off James Neesham’s over to push their powerplay score to a decent 48 for 2.
However, this fightback didn’t last long. Ravindra made up for his earlier mistake by tempting Markram into a dreadful shot down the ground, with Daryl Mitchell taking a spectacular tumbling catch at long on that passed the third umpire’s review. Next came David Miller, the hero who had rescued South Africa against India in similar circumstances. He also got a lucky break when Glenn Phillips dropped a fairly simple catch at deep extra cover. But Miller couldn’t make the most of that opportunity, falling in the same Ravindra over. A smartly disguised slower ball did the trick, with the mishit finding long off this time with no such luck.
When Brevis was dismissed two deliveries later, South Africa sat at 77 for 5, and their chances looked increasingly slim. Marco Jansen and Tristan Stubbs began a careful recovery, working hard to reach 113 for 5 after 16 overs before finally unleashing their power. Jansen and Stubbs hammered 15 runs off Matt Henry’s over, then targeted Neesham, taking turns to send the ball over the rope in a punishing 22-run over that briefly raised hopes of a fighting total.
But we are seeing that Lockie Ferguson was thinking something else only. He came back to bowl and got Stubbs out with a sharp leg cutter, as per his plan to break the partnership. This happened just when their partnership was becoming dangerous regarding the match situation. Jansen continued batting alone with great calm and hit two sixes to reach his fifty in just 27 balls, but he could face only one ball in the last over as South Africa fell well short of the important 180-run target itself. The team needed further runs to reach a competitive total.
NEW ZEALAND-
We are seeing New Zealand starting their chase very well – they scored 19 runs in only the first two overs, with a couple of chances going just out of reach of the South African fielders. Further, basically, that was the same closest point where Markram’s team could stop the flow. As per the match details, Allen and Seifert hit Jansen badly in the third over, then scored 22 runs from Corbin Bosch to finish the Powerplay and almost win the match.
Then it actually became all about the numbers. Everything was definitely focused on the calculations. Basically Seifert scored his fifty runs in the same 28 balls he faced. We are seeing Allen reaching there only nine balls faster in the next over. Kagiso Rabada actually broke their 117-run partnership in the 10th over, but the big hitting was definitely not finished yet. Further, we are seeing Allen scoring very fast from 50 to 100 runs in only 14 balls, and he reached this big milestone with the last shot of the match, which was a perfect ending to this famous win.
Finn Allen and Tim Seifert will actually play together for KKR at Eden Gardens in next month’s IPL, but today they definitely made this ground their own playground by scoring 84 runs in the Powerplay while chasing 170. The remaining chase was showmanship itself and did not have further real purpose. Allen surely dominated with 10 fours and eight sixes to score an unbeaten century in just 33 balls, breaking Chris Gayle’s previous T20 World Cup record by 14 balls. Moreover, New Zealand won with 7.1 overs remaining, clearly showing how one-sided the match had become.
Brief scores:
South Africa actually scored 169 runs for 8 wickets in their 20 overs, with Marcon Jansen definitely playing well at 55 not out. Rachin Ravindra actually took 2 wickets for 29 runs. As per the match result, New Zealand won by 9 wickets after scoring 173/1 in 12.5 overs, with Finn Allen making 100* and Tim Seifert scoring 58, while Cole McConchie took 2 wickets for 9 runs.
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