A new champion was to be crowned in Dubai on Sunday as New Zealand and Australia faced off against each in the final of the T20 World Cup, both of whom had not won a T20 World Cup thus far.
Both teams came into the final against the backdrop of stunning victories in the semi-finals, hopeful of lifting the coveted trophy for the first time. Australia were unchanged, while New Zealand were forced to make a change as Devon Conway suffered an injury, making way for Tim Seifert. Aussie captain Aaron Finch won the toss, and went with the popular choice of fielding first.
Batting was largely difficult in the first innings, with the New Zealand batsman struggling to get the runs flowing. Australia struck in the fourth over as a Josh Hazlewood slower delivery got rid of Daryl Mitchell, who edged it into Matthew Wade’s grateful grasp. The only New Zealand batsman who actually looked in control, Kane Williamson walked out to bat. Williamson did take time to settle, looking around and taking a few singles, as the Black Caps finished the powerplay on 32/1.
Williamson was very good in the middle overs, particularly in overs 11-15, as he accelerated the New Zealand innings by a noticeable margin, scoring boundaries on a regular basis. He took a particular liking to express pacer Mitchell Starc, who was smashed for 19 runs in the 11th over. Williamson partner Martin Guptill, however, also tried to up the scoring rate, but instead holed out to Marcus Stoinis at deep mid-wicket, departing for a 35-ball 28.
Williamson continued the onslaught as he took Glenn Maxwell’s 13th over for 16 runs, including two beautiful slog sweeps which cleared the fence. At the other end, Glenn Phillips also tried to join the party, hitting a couple of boundaries off Adam Zampa’s final over.
Williamson then flogged Mitchell Starc, hitting four boundaries and a massive six, scoring 22 runs in the 16th over as New Zealand looked well on-track for a huge total. However, the Kiwis probably lost out on a few valuable runs, as the 18th over yielded two massive wickets, one of Glenn Phillips, and the other of the magnificent Williamson, who played an astounding knock of 85 in just 48 balls. Jimmy Neesham and Tim Seifert then scored some boundaries in the last two overs to take the Kiwis to a daunting total of 172/5.
With a challenging target to chase down, along with the added pressure of the final, the onus was on the Aussie top-order to get off to a good start. However, this wasn’t necessarily the case, as the dangerous Aaron Finch was dismissed early on.
The Aussie captain miscued an attempted pull shot off Trent Boult, which was safely pocketed by Daryl Mitchell, leaving Australia in trouble early on. Mitch Marsh was in at 3, and gave a very speedy disclaimer of what was to come, hitting his first three balls for 6,4,and 4.
Marsh and Warner put on a decisive partnership, with both batsmen looking to be in excellent touch. Marsh was the aggressor, as Warner played a mature innings to take Australia to a strong position of 82/1 at the halfway mark. Things only got worse for New Zealand after this point, as Australia took a stranglehold on the match, getting the runs flowing thick and fast.
Warner was cleaned up by Boult in the 13th over, giving the Black Caps a glimmer of hope. However, this was not to be as Maxwell and Marsh together continued the domination, hitting boundaries at will. Ish Sodhi, who was excellent throughout the tournament, surprisingly went for 16 runs in the 14th over, perhaps ending the contest then and there.
From that point, it was smooth sailing for the Aussies, as Maxwell finished the chase off with a reverse paddle sweep to win Australia their first ever T20 World Cup, after a 14-year long wait for the trophy.
Marsh was rightfully awarded the man of the match for his scintillating innings of 77* in just 50 deliveries, whereas David Warner, on whom doubts were cast during the IPL in regard to his form and his ability to continue to play at the highest level, shut his critics down, as he picked up the award for being the player of the tournament. A fairytale victory for Australia, who, before the tournament, didn’t look anything like the champion side they eventually became.
Brief Scores
New Zealand- 172/5 in 20 overs (Williamson-85(48); Guptill-28(35); Hazlewood-3/16)
Australia- 173/2 in 18.5 overs (Marsh-77*(50); Warner-53(38); Boult-2/18)
Australia beat New Zealand in the final of the 2021 T20 World Cup by eight wickets with seven balls to spare.
