Abhishek Sharma smashed a 35-ball century as India thrashed New Zealand by six wickets in the third T20 international in Wellington on Tuesday, sealing the five-match series with two games still to play.
Chasing 199 for victory, India reached the target in just 13.2 overs, with 40 balls to spare, after a breathtaking opening stand that rewrote the record books. The win gave India an unassailable 3-0 lead in the series.
FAKTA: New Zealand vs India, 3rd T20I
- Venue: Sky Stadium, Wellington, on Tuesday, 27 October 2026
- New Zealand: 198 for 3 in 20 overs (Daryl Mitchell 89 not out off 52 balls)
- India: 199 for 4 in 13.2 overs (Abhishek Sharma 113 off 38 balls)
- Result: India won by six wickets, with 40 balls to spare
- Series: India lead the five-match series 3-0
- Player of the match: Abhishek Sharma
- Next match: Fourth T20I in Auckland on Friday
Abhishek Sharma century destroys the chase
India captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss for the third match in a row and again chose to bowl first. New Zealand posted a competitive total, built around Daryl Mitchell’s unbeaten 89 from 52 balls, with Finn Allen adding 40. At the halfway stage, 198 looked a serious target.
It lasted barely an hour as a contest. Abhishek Sharma reached his fifty from only 15 balls and raced to his hundred in 35 deliveries, striking nine fours and 11 sixes in a 113-run innings from just 38 balls. It was his fourth T20 international century and his 11th hundred in all T20 cricket, moving him past Virat Kohli’s tally of 10.
The opener narrowly missed his own record for the fastest T20 international hundred by a batter from a Full Member nation, the 30-ball century he scored against Afghanistan in Delhi last month. He was eventually caught off Kyle Jamieson, with Glenn Phillips taking the catch near the boundary, after New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner had dropped him on 92 in the swirling Wellington wind.
“That was the plan for us. Just get the momentum for the team and keep going,” Abhishek Sharma said after being named player of the match.
A record-breaking powerplay
Abhishek Sharma century celebrations were matched by the numbers around it. Promoted to open the batting, 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi struck 45 from 19 balls, and the pair added 133 for the first wicket in 7.1 overs before Sooryavanshi was caught at long-on off Matthew Fisher.
India reached 118 without loss at the end of the six-over powerplay, the highest powerplay total ever recorded in a men’s T20 international, passing Romania’s 116 against Serbia in 2021. The team fifty had come up in just 2.2 overs, equalling the fastest ever, and India passed 100 inside five overs.
“Pretty tough to stop those guys when they’re going,” New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner said. “We’ve seen it before, seen it in the IPL and obviously witnessed it here tonight in New Zealand.”
Mitchell’s effort in vain as India seal the series
New Zealand’s bowlers had no answers once the openers found their range. Jacob Duffy’s first over went for 26 runs, and the attack never recovered. Santner’s own figures of one wicket for 17 runs from three overs stood out as the only economical spell on a punishing night for the hosts.
After Abhishek Sharma’s dismissal, India’s middle order calmly finished the remaining runs, with Sanju Samson and Naman Dhir seeing the side home. The series now moves to Auckland for the fourth match on Friday, with India chasing a clean sweep and New Zealand playing for pride.
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