Key events
Andy Bull
South Africa won every match they could afford to lose in this tournament and then lost the first one that they had to win. They were completely marmalised by New Zealand, who won the first semi-final by nine wickets. Finn Allen ripped through South Africa’s feared fast bowling attack, and hit an unbeaten hundred off just 33 balls. It was the fastest century in the history of the competition, and, as Allen said himself, the innings of his life. Only two batters have ever hit a faster ton in international T20 cricket.
South Africa’s captain, Aidan Markram, blamed the change in conditions for throwing off his team. “We’ll reflect as a group,” he said, “We’ll let the emotions settle first and foremost and once they do we’ll get back on the horse and try and get better. But we’re obviously hugely disappointed with the result, it feels like we’ve been slapped in the face.”
Mitchell Santner’s verdict
Yeah, it was nice. We know how good South Africa are so to put on a performance like that in a crunch game is pretty pleasing.
We tried to keep them under pressure for a long time and we used more spin early on [than in the group game against South Africa]. If you can take wickets throughout it’s a challenge to keep going with the bat.
[On the opening partnership] It was nice to watch, I’m not gonna lie. We were very happy chasing 170 but you never know. They took it on, which was cool to see. If you get through a Powerplay none down, it puts you in a pretty position. And then Finny just carried on. I mean, 33 balls for a hundred’s not bad.
Aiden Markram’s reaction
They bowled really well up front. The ball didn’t quite feel like it was coming on – some balls stopped, some kept low – and that made scoring really tough. Pressure builds and you lose wickets unfortunately. And then when someone plays an innings like that against you, you won’t come out on the right side of the result too often.
To get to 170 was a great effort and we felt like we had a sniff. But they got off to a flyer and from there it was really hard to pull it back. We must give credit to Finn Allen and Tim Seifert for killing the game as early as they did.
We’ll let the emotions settle and then have a discussion as a group. We expected the wicket to play really well and maybe we didn’t adapt quickly enough with the bat. We’re disappointed with the result but I’m really proud of this group of guys; they’ve played some great cricket during the tournament.
The player of the match is Finn Allen
[Is that the best you’ve ever played?] I’d say it’s pretty up there. I just wanted to get in good positions and put in a good performance for the team.
We wanted to put them on the back foot early. It’s easy for me when Tim [Seifert] starts like that – he got us off to an absolute flyer. We enjoyed it out there together.
We’ll celebrate a little moment of success and then look forward to the final on Sunday.
New Zealand’s opponents in the final will be India or England, who meet in the second semi-final tomorrow. Here’s Simon Burnton’s preview of that game.
New Zealand are through to their fourth World Cup final, two in ODIs and now two in T20s. Few cricket fans would begrudge them their first victory.
New Zealand win by nine wickets with 43 balls remaining
12.5 overs: New Zealand 173-1 (Allen 100, Ravindra 13) Goodness me. What an innings from Finn Allen and what a performance from New Zealand, who routed a South African team that had been the best in the tournament. They look utterly stunned as they try to make sense of the last hour and a half.
Finn Allen makes an astonishing hundred!
He’s done it! He smashes Jansen over mid-off to complete victory and bring up a 33-ball hundred, the fastest at a men’s World Cup. Allen has obliterated the previous record for New Zealand’s fastest hundred, which was 46 balls.
Who needs to manipulate the strike? Allen has butchered successive deliveries Jansen for 4, 4, 6 and 6 to bring the scores level. He’s on 96 with two balls left in the over.
Allen could yet make a century if New Zealand manipulate the strike: he needs 24 runs, New Zealand need 21.
12th over: New Zealand 149-1 (Allen 76, Ravindra 13) After a massage and maybe some pickle juice, Allen picks up where he left off. Maharaj is clipped for four and slammed over wide mid-on for six. Allen’s numbers are outrageous: 76 from 28 balls with seven fours and six sixes.
New Zealand need 21 from eight to win. Eight overs, not eight balls. This is an almighty towelling.
Finn Allen has cramp and is receiving treatment. Not sure why: he can just stand there and hit more sixes.
11th over: New Zealand 137-1 (Allen 65, Ravindra 12) Four more to Ravindra, flicked elegantly through midwicket off Bosch. There’s no sign of New Zealand slowing down or playing it safe; they’re batting as if they need to reach their target inside 15 overs. Allen reinforces the point by heaving Bosch into the crowd at cow corner. That’s his fifth six.
10th over: New Zealand 124-1 (Allen 58, Ravindra 6) The new batter Rachin Ravindra gets his first boundary with a high-class drive past backward point.
WICKET! New Zealand 117-1 (Seifert b Rabada 58)
Kagiso Rabada gets a consolation wicket, cutting one back to bowl Tim Seifert for 58. A brilliant knock from Seifert, whose intent at the start of the innings put South Africa straight on the back foot.
9th over: New Zealand 117-0 (Seifert 58, Allen 58) Allen laps Maharaj to the fine leg boundary to move to 49. A single down the ground brings up a mighty fifty from only 19 balls, the joint fastest at this World Cup. Outrageous stuff.
A vicious pull over midwicket brings Allen six more. This is bonkers.
8th over: New Zealand 103-0 (Seifert 57, Allen 45) Seifert reaches a punishing 28-ball fifty by slicing Ngidi over short third for four. That early reprieve, when Quinton de Kock wrongly called for a chance near fine leg, has hurt South Africa so much. Seifert belts another boundary to bring up the hundred partnership in 7.5 overs. Seven. Point. Five. Overs.
Ngidi hands his head when a beautiful slower ball dips under Seifert’s bat and misses off stump by a whisker.
“Close eh?” says Alistair Connor. “I knew it was not going to be close. After watching WI-India on this ground, I was delighted and surprised to see South Africa get less than 180. Easy.”
7th over: New Zealand 91-0 (Seifert 47, Allen 44) The Powerplay is over; the power play is not. Seifert makes room to belabour Keshav Maharaj’s third ball through extra cover for four.
A relatively quiet over, yet New Zealand still scored seven from it. They need 79 from 78 balls and should cruise to victory.
New Zealand smash 84 in the Powerplay
6th over: New Zealand 84-0 (Seifert 41, Allen 43) Finn Allen completes an awesome Powerplay by manhandling Corbin Bosch’s first over for 22.
He carved the first ball over backward point for six, a shot of outrageous brilliance, then hit four successive fours: a pull through wide mid-on, an edge over short third, a thump down the ground and another edge.
South Africa look utterly shell-shocked. They are facing their eighth defeat in nine World Cup semi-finals. If you include the Champions Trophy it’s 13 defeats in 15 semis. Plenty will say they’ve choked but I’m not sure that’s the case. If nothing else, the game hasn’t been close enough.
5th over: New Zealand 62-0 (Seifert 41, Allen 21) South Africa started well with the ball and were unfortunate not to take at least one early wicket. But they look like they are starting to feel sorry for themselves, whether because of those near misses or the impact of losing the toss. Seifert picks a slower ball from Rabada and larrups it over long-on for six, a spectacular shot that he follows with a pull for four.
New Zealand, who reached World Cup finals in 2015, 2019 and 2021, look like they are hurtling towards another. They need 108 from 90 balls.
4th over: New Zealand 48-0 (Seifert 28, Allen 20) Lungi Ngidi, the man with a million slower balls, comes into the attack. But the onslaught continues when Allen runs outside off stump to scoop six more. He has 20 from 8 balls, Seifert 28 from 16, and New Zealand are in complete control.
3rd over: New Zealand 37-0 (Seifert 24, Allen 13) There’s nothing lucky about Allen’s next shot, a thumping straight six off Jansen. South Africa think they have their first wicket when Seifert smears across the line – Aiden Markram reviews for caught behind, thinking/hoping there was a bottom edge. There wasn’t.
Seifert scoops the next ball for six, then waves a hold-the-pose drive down the ground for four. Eighteen from the over. Despite some good bowling, South Africa are already under serious pressure.
2nd over: New Zealand 19-0 (Seifert 13, Allen 6) Another let-off for Seifert, who hooks Kagiso Rabada’s second ball miles in the air. De Kock charges towards fine leg, tells Brevis it’s his catch but can’t quite reach the ball as he dived forward. That looked like a much better chance for Brevis.
Finn Allen steers his first ball past slip for four. It went finer than he intended so Rabada will feel unfortunate with that too – and again when Allen thumps his second delivery just short of cover.
1st over: New Zealand 11-0 (Seifert 11, Allen 0) An eventful start to the innings. Seifert drives Jansen square for four, snicks another boundary wide of slip and edges the next delivery this far short of Rickelton at short third.
We’re back. And the giant left-arm quick Marco Jansen is going to bowl the first over.
“This is going to be tight isn’t it,” says Ruth Purdue. “Fair play for SA for battling through past 150. Are we going to see the old South Africa or the new world beaters? Do you think the Proteas have the best bowling lineup in the tournament?”
I’d probably take India’s on paper but in this tournament SA have been the best I guess. They’re the only team going at less than eight an over with the ball. How they cope with the dew will probably decide this game.
20th over: South Africa 169-6 (Jansen 55, Maharaj 1) Maharaj dabs the hat-trick ball for a single to get Jansen on strike for the last delivery of the innings. He scruffs a yorker down the ground for two to complete an outstanding last over from Matt Henry: six runs, two wickets. New Zealand need 170 to win.
WICKET! South Africa 166-8 (Rabada c Neesham b Henry 0)
Poor batting from Kagiso Rabada, who chips his first ball to Neesham at long on. That means Jansen stays off strike.
WICKET! South Africa 166-7 (Bosch b Henry 2)
Matt Henry takes care of Corbin Bosch with an immaculate yorker. Three balls remaining; South Africa need Jansen to face the last two.
19th over: South Africa 163-6 (Jansen 52, Bosch 1) Jansen continues a gem of an innings by cuffing a short ball from Ferguson over mid-on for six. He drives the next ball over long-on for six more to reach a coruscating 27-ball fifty, including 31 from the last nine deliveries.
WICKET! South Africa 150-6 (Stubbs b Ferguson 29)
Fabulous bowling from Lockie Ferguson, who goes round the wicket to the right-handed Stubbs and cleans him up with a slower ball. Stubbs goes for a handy 24-ball 29; there are 11 deliveries remaining.