Abhishek Sharma produced a scintillating 35-ball century to lead India to a six-wicket win over New Zealand in Wellington on Tuesday. The victory allowed Shreyas Iyer’s side to seal the Twenty20 International series with two matches to spare.
Sharma and Sooryavanshi Power Explosive Chase
Set a target of 199 runs to win the third T20I, India completed the run chase in just 13.2 overs. Sharma opened alongside 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, with the duo combining to record the fastest team 50 in white-ball cricket history in only 2.2 overs. The pair put on a dominant opening stand of 133 runs off 44 deliveries before Sooryavanshi was caught at long-on by Daryl Mitchell off Matthew Fisher.
Fisher nearly claimed Sharma’s wicket three balls later, but Mitchell Santner dropped the opener on 92 at extra cover. Sharma went on to score 113 runs off 38 balls before Kyle Jamieson dismissed him in the 10th over, caught by Glenn Phillips at deep mid-wicket. Sharma had previously set the record for the fastest T20I century against a Test-playing nation with a 30-ball ton against Afghanistan last month.
“I think the key was pretty simple,” Sharma said. “Me and Vaibhav were just going to enjoy ourselves for a bit in the power play.”
He explained that observing the pitch during the opening innings shaped their strategy. “When we were fielding, we were observing the pitch. There was a bit of extra bounce, and with the dimensions of the ground we could use the power play and the pace of the ball. The plan was just to get momentum for the team.”
Host Innings and Series Outcome
In the first innings, Daryl Mitchell top-scored for New Zealand with an unbeaten 89 off 52 balls. Contributions from Finn Allen, who scored 40, and Bevon Jacobs, who added an unbeaten 39, pushed the hosts just short of 200 runs.
During the latter stage of the chase, Santner dismissed Iyer for five after he hit to Phillips at deep mid-wicket, while Jamieson claimed his second wicket by bowling Sanju Samson for 18. The overall result gives India consecutive T20I series wins over New Zealand, following their 4-1 victory on home soil in January.
