Kolkata: A five-match series against India on similar black soil surfaces in the lead up to the T20 World Cup proved invaluable, said explosive New Zealand opener Finn Allen after powering the Kiwis to the T20 World Cup final with a nine-wicket win over South Africa here on Wednesday.
Allen lit up the Eden Gardens with a stunning 33-ball 100 not out, toying with the South African attack with towering sixes and superb boundaries as New Zealand chased down 170 in just 12.5 overs, sealing a nine-wicket win with 43 balls to spare.
“It was an extremely impressive start from our bowlers — they set the game up for us, for sure,” Allen said in the post-match media interaction.
Speaking after the match, Finn Allen credited New Zealand’s recent series in India for helping him adapt to different pitches. “Training in different conditions before the World Cup really helped. We knew it would be black soil; we had that intel. Shows how important that series was before the World Cup,” Allen said.
Tim Seifert gave New Zealand a flying start with 58 off 33 balls before falling to Kagiso Rabada. Allen then took charge, finishing the chase with a century, the fastest in a Men’s T20 World Cup history and the fastest for New Zealand in the tournament. It was also the quickest against South Africa in T20 World Cup history.
“Just tried to get in good positions and perform for the team. We wanted to start well and put them on the back foot early. Easy for me when Timmy is going like that. I can just watch and get him on strike. He batted on a flyer. Huge game for us. Timmy and I just kept ensuring we’re looking straight and going hard,” he said after winning the POTM award.
