A whirlwind ton from Finn Allen sealed New Zealand's spot in the T20 World Cup 2026 final.
Former South African skipper Faf du Plessis has assessed what helps the New Zealand opener, Finn Allen, to consistently score runs with a blazing strike rate. The insights come following the record-breaking ton in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final last night, knocking the unbeaten Proteas out of the tournament.
The 26-year-old had lit up the Eden Gardens Stadium on his way to notching up the fastest century in T20 World Cup history. Allen achieved the feat in just 33 deliveries, striking at an astonishing rate of 303.03, surpassing former Caribbean great Chris Gayle’s record of reaching the milestone in 47 balls.
“A lot of guys who play at that tempo, is generally guys that can get you a 30 to a 50 and then they get out. But the thing with Finn is his numbers in terms of when he gets runs, he actually gets big runs. So like even in the circuit around T20 cricket, there’s been a few hundreds, has been a few nineties. That’s when someone really makes a difference,” he noted in a ESPN Cricinfo video.
While speaking about the consistency of the swashbuckling opener, the former Proteas captain also acknowledged his on-field tactical brilliance. The player emphasised how a mixture of sheer firepower and execution, backed by strategic planning, makes him a modern T20 beast.
“His decision making, Marco Jansen has got pace and bounce, so I’m going to use the pace and the bounce to execute it [lap shot], whereas against a different bowler he might come at you, taking you downtown. People don’t associate strength and smartness in the same sentence but with Finn Allen it’s there,” stated Du Plessis.
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Since his T20I debut in March 2021, the opener has amassed 1,654 runs in 61 matches, laced with three hundreds and seven fifty-plus knocks, at a blistering strike rate of 171.04. Moreover, Allen was coming into the mega T20 championship after setting the stage ablaze in the Big Bash League 2025. His 466 runs in 11 fixtures, including two fifties and a century, had guided the Perth Scorchers to a record sixth BBL title.
Following this, the youngster had also put up a stellar 38-ball 80 against India after joining the Black Caps’ camp for the final T20I of the five-match overseas series. Currently, the right-hander is the third-highest run-getter of the tournament, with one more match to go. New Zealand will square off against the second semi-final’s winner for the ultimate battle of silverware on March 8 in Ahmedabad.
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