India will face New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. The Kiwi team won the toss and decided to bowl first. He made one change, bringing on Jacob Duffy in place of Cole McConchie. This was a difficult change for the team as India had five left-handed players in the team.
The Men in Blue got off to a great start to the game as captain Suryakumar Yadav looked to bat first. Openers Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma got off to a great start scoring more than 15 runs per over. The batsmen were in luck as two outside edges went past the boundary line. However, after a cautious start in the first two overs, India scored 60 runs in three overs.
India made the highest score ever in powerplay
Sanju Samson, who was in great form in the tournament, came into this game with the firepower of Abhishek Sharma. They scored 92/0 in the powerplay and dismissed every bowler from the field.
Highest powerplay score ever
| score | match | venue | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 92/0 | india vs new zealand | Ahmedabad | 2026 |
| 92/1 | west indies vs afg | bridgetown | 2024 |
| 91/1 | NED vs IRE | Sylhet | 2014 |
| 89/3 | England vs South Africa | Mumbai WS | 2016 |
| 86/1 | India vs NAM | Delhi | 2026 |
After this score, both the openers etched their names in the history books as India scored the highest ever powerplay score in World Cup history, and also the highest powerplay score in this edition of the competition. Earlier, West Indies had scored 92/1 against Afghanistan in the previous edition of the World Cup.
Abhishek Sharma started the massacre
Abhishek Sharma, what a place and time, the southpaw chose to score his second half-century in the competition. His performance was poor throughout the tournament, but he chose the right opportunity to bring back his form and give the Indian team a start. The southpaw was out for 52 off 21, hitting three sixes and doubling the number of fours.
India’s score at the end of 16 overs is 204/4, Sanju and Ishan Kishan have not stopped firing and are thrashing the Kiwi bowlers. India are looking for another 250+ score on the night, with 9 wickets left and depth in their batting.
Sanju Samson is once again the star for India
Sanju is out on the score of 89 runs in 46 balls and in the same over, Kishan is also out on the score of 54 runs in 25 balls, Jimmy Neesham has given him two successes. Neesham was the team’s best bowler tonight with two wickets as he gave away just one run in the 16th over.
Sanju has made the highest individual score so far in the T20 World Cup final. India have already scored over 200 runs, and this is the team’s highest score so far in a T20 World Cup final.
India are a bit on the back foot as they take their score to 255/5 with five balls remaining. The Kiwis made a slight comeback; However, Neesham’s 24 runs in the final over helped him post the third highest score so far in the T20 World Cup. Shivam Dubey’s inning of 26 runs in 8 balls was worth watching.
Also read: Suryakumar Yadav trolled badly after taking sensational catch of Rachin Ravindra in T20 World Cup final