New Zealand pegged them again with two fast wickets. Captain Mitchell Santner dismissed Sharafu whereas Glenn Phillips despatched again Harshit Kaushik inside the area of 10 balls and 5 runs, lowering UAE to 124/3.
Regardless of the setback, Waseem continued to plunder runs. The UAE captain carried the bat via for an unbeaten 66 off 45 balls, slamming 4 fours and three sixes in the course of the innings. Mayank Kumar additionally chipped in with a cameo of 21.
Matt Henry snapped two wickets off the final two balls of the innings, whereas Jacob Duffy, Santner, Lockie Ferguson and Phillips claimed a wicket apiece.
Unbeaten in Chennai in any format since 2011, New Zealand flexed their muscle within the chase. They hit fifth gear within the second over, and have been relentless in pursuit. With Tim Seifert and Finn Allen in punishing temper, New Zealand placed on 78/0 within the first six overs, together with 20 within the sixth over. It was simply the beginning the Kiwis wanted to thwart any hopes of an upset for the UAE.
Seifert introduced up his 50 in 23 balls, making it the second-fastest century of the World Cup to this point. There was no reprieve on the different finish for UAE, as Allen continued to face and ship, racing to 50 in 27 balls.
Whereas Seifert completed unbeaten on 89 (42 balls, 12 fours, three sixes), Allen was not out on 84 (50 balls, 5 fours and 5 sixes) as New Zealand romped to 175/0 in 15.2 overs. Fittingly, Seifert introduced up victory with a six after dancing down the pitch. The 175-run stand between Seifert and Allen was the best partnership for any wicket in males’s T20 World Cup historical past.
It was New Zealand’s second successive win on the T20 World Cup 2026 and noticed them climb atop Group D standings.
