Finn Allen century powers New Zealand into final but final opponent unclear
March 4, 2026 at 10: 00 p. m. ET — Finn Allen struck an unbeaten 100 from 33 balls to power New Zealand into the T20 World Cup final. Unconfirmed as of 11: 00 a. m. ET: who New Zealand will face in Sunday’s final; that opponent will be decided by the other semi-final result and the tournament schedule release.
Finn Allen’s record innings and New Zealand’s decisive chase
New Zealand 173-1 (12. 5 overs) is a confirmed fact. Finn Allen scored 100 not out from 33 balls, hitting 10 fours and eight sixes; Tim Seifert made 58 from 33 deliveries. New Zealand won by nine wickets with 43 balls remaining, completing a chase of the confirmed target of 170. The opening partnership was 117 runs from 55 balls for the first wicket.
Still, the scale of Allen’s innings is confirmed: it was the fastest century in T20 World Cup history and the joint third-fastest in men’s T20 internationals, bettering the previous World Cup benchmark by 14 deliveries. These records are presented as confirmed facts from the match summary.
Marco Jansen and South Africa’s late acceleration amid earlier collapse
South Africa 169-8 (20 overs) is confirmed. Marco Jansen finished unbeaten on 55 from 30 balls and put on a confirmed 73-run partnership (48 balls) for the sixth wicket with Tristan Stubbs, whose 29 from 24 is confirmed. Dewald Brevis scored a confirmed 34 from 27 before being caught in the covers by Mitchell Santner in the 11th over.
Still, the sequence that left South Africa at 77-5 is a confirmed match state; details about why specific earlier batters failed to capitalize are unconfirmed as of 11: 00 a. m. ET. Confirmed dismissals include Quinton de Kock and Ryan Rickelton falling in consecutive deliveries in the second over. Aiden Markram made 18 from 20 and David Miller made 6; both were confirmed to have been dropped earlier in their innings.
Sunday final confirmed for New Zealand; opponent unconfirmed as of 11: 00 a. m. ET
The scheduling outcome that moves this story forward is confirmed: New Zealand have secured a place in Sunday’s T20 World Cup final. Unconfirmed as of 11: 00 a. m. ET is the identity of New Zealand’s opponent in that final. The immediate observable trigger that will resolve that uncertainty is the completion and official result of the remaining semi-final and the tournament’s official match schedule release.
That said, the match statistics that will matter in the final are confirmed from this semi-final: Allen’s 100*, Seifert’s 58, South Africa’s 169-8, and Jansen’s unbeaten 55*. Teams and analysts will look to those confirmed numbers when evaluating matchups, though lineup and fitness decisions for Sunday have not been confirmed in the material provided.
Still, the stakes are clear and tied to confirmed outcomes: a New Zealand win in Sunday’s final will make them tournament champions. Conditional: If New Zealand wins the final on Sunday, they will be confirmed as T20 World Cup winners; if they lose, the opposing team will be confirmed as champions.
The confirmed next event that will resolve the remaining headline uncertainty is the T20 World Cup final on Sunday (time not specified in the available information). Unconfirmed as of 11: 00 a. m. ET are the final start time and New Zealand’s opponent; those will be resolved once the other semi-final concludes and the tournament issues its official schedule.
