It took something extraordinary to snap South Africa’s unbeaten surge at the Twenty20 World Cup.
New Zealand opener Finn Allen delivered it in stunning fashion, smashing the fastest century in tournament history to fire his side into Wednesday’s final at Eden Gardens.
South Africa had rolled through seven straight wins to reach the semifinal, including a commanding group-stage victory over New Zealand earlier in the competition. Confidence was high. Momentum was theirs.
The 2024 runners-up had wrestled the favorites tag away from defending champions India after a ruthless Super Eights display that strengthened belief they could go all the way.
On paper, the edge still leaned toward South Africa. On the field, New Zealand found another gear. Allen’s breathtaking assault flipped the script, and when it mattered most, the Black Caps held their nerve to seal a second T20 World Cup final appearance.
“It was nice,” New Zealand captain Mitch Santner said after they won with 7.1 overs to spare.
“We knew how good South Africa are, and they’ve shown it throughout this tournament. To get a good performance like that against them is pleasing.
“We weren’t as good as we could have been in defeat in the group stage. But today was about trying to chop and change during bowling because the wicket was good. It was a short ground with a fast outfield.”
While Allen set the stadium alight with his sensational power-hitting, the foundation of their nine-wicket victory was laid by their bowlers, who restricted South Africa’s fiery batting lineup to a modest 169-8.
Off-spinner Cole McConchie took out left-handers Quinton de Kock and Ryan Rickleton in his first over, and South Africa, slumping to 77-5 in the 11th over, could never really recover.
Marco Jansen (55) powered them to a competitive total, but the pitch had eased by then.
Allen and Tim Seifert (58) combined for a 117-run opening stand that effectively killed the contest.
Allen smacked 10 fours and eight sixes in an incendiary knock, sealing victory with a four that also brought up the fastest hundred in a T20 international between two full-member nations.
“To get to 170 was a great effort, and we felt we had a sniff,” South Africa captain Aiden Markram said.
“But as it goes in T20 cricket, the power play got off to a flyer, and it was hard to pull back. You give credit to their openers for killing the game like they did. A bad night for us tonight.
“It feels like a slap in the face, and we need to be better as a team.”
Defending champions India take on twice champions England in the second semifinal in Mumbai on Thursday.
