What a day Finn Allen had at Eden Gardens! The New Zealand opener destroyed South Africa completely in the semifinal. His batting looked like something from a video game honestly.
Finn Allen’s historic 100 came off just 33 balls! That’s faster than anyone else in T20 World Cup history. He didn’t just break one record – he shattered multiple records simultaneously.
The Semifinal Match Situation
South Africa scored 169 for 8 wickets in their innings. They came into this match completely unbeaten all tournament. Everyone expected a close contest between the two teams.
New Zealand had lost to South Africa earlier in this tournament. But Eden Gardens on March 4 witnessed something absolutely special. The Kiwis chased down 173 in just 12.5 overs!
Allen remained unbeaten on 100 runs from 33 balls. His partner barely needed to score anything at all. New Zealand won by 9 wickets reaching the final easily.
Records Broken by Finn Allen’s Historic 100
Let’s talk about the record books Allen completely rewrote. He hit 8 massive sixes during his incredible innings. That’s the most by any New Zealand player ever!
His century beat Chris Gayle’s 47-ball record from 2016. Nobody scored faster in T20 World Cup history before. Allen also became the first centurion in any semifinal.
Tillakaratne Dilshan previously held the knockout stage record with 96 runs. Allen smashed past that mark by 4 runs. His 20 tournament sixes broke Shimron Hetmyer’s record too.
Allen matched Sikandar Raza’s 33-ball hundred from 2024. They jointly hold the fastest century by full members. Against full member nations specifically, Allen beats everyone outright.
| No. | Record | Details | Previous Record Holder |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fastest century in T20 World Cup history | 33 balls | Chris Gayle – 47 balls vs England (2016) |
| 2 | First century in a T20 World Cup semi-final or final | 100 (knockout match) | Tillakaratne Dilshan – 96* (2009 semi-final) |
| 3 | Fastest T20I century vs a Full Member nation | 33 balls | Rohit Sharma – 35 balls vs Sri Lanka (2017); David Miller – 35 balls vs Bangladesh (2017) |
| 4 | Most sixes by a New Zealand player in a single T20 World Cup innings | 8 sixes | Previous New Zealand best surpassed |
| 5 | Joint-fastest T20I century by a Full Member player | 33 balls | Sikandar Raza – 33 balls vs Gambia (2024) |
| 6 | First T20I century at Eden Gardens | 100 | Sanju Samson – 97 (previous best at venue) |
| 7 | Fastest T20I century for New Zealand | 33 balls | Glenn Phillips – 46 balls (2020) |
What Finn Allen’s Historic 100 Means
This becomes the first T20 century ever at Eden Gardens! Sanju Samson’s 97 was the previous best there. Allen also broke Glenn Phillips’ New Zealand record of 46 balls.
New Zealand now faces the India-England semifinal winner on March 8. The final will happen in Ahmedabad soon. Can anyone stop New Zealand’s momentum after this performance?
South Africa’s unbeaten run ended in the worst possible way. Allen single-handedly crushed their World Cup dreams completely. What an unforgettable semifinal innings!
