NZ vs SA T20 World Cup 2026 Semifinal: England fast bowler Jofra Archer's 13-year-old tweet suddenly attracted attention after New Zealand's Finn Allen hit a record-breaking century against South Africa in the first semifinal of the T20 World Cup 2026. Allen, who will play for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2026, blasted 10 fours and eight sixes to chase down 170 runs in just 13 overs, leaving the Proteas stunned and moving his team closer to their first title.
Playing on the front foot, Allen practiced hitting big shots like professional golfers. His shots sent the ball high into the air, where it disappeared into thin air.
In March 2013, Archer tweeted, “Raise that bat Finn,” a post now seen as curiously connected to Allen’s heroics.
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Raise that bat Finn
— Jofra Archer (@JofraArcher) March 10, 2013
At the time, many might have assumed Archer was referring to England fast bowler Steven Finn, who scored 56 off 203 balls as a No. 3 against New Zealand in a March 2013 Test match.
On Wednesday, Allen took five balls in Marco Jansen's over to go all guns blazing. He turned his dream outing into a nightmare for the opposition.
The Mitchell Santner-led side dominated the semifinal from the first ball. They restricted the Proteas to a target of 169 runs thanks to brilliant spin by Cole McConchie (2/9) and Rachin Ravindra (2/29).
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The Aiden Markram-led side bounced back for a while when Jansen scored 54 runs off 30 balls. However, his efforts went in vain. New Zealand's openers Tim Seifert and Finn Allen dominated South Africa's bowling. They built a match-winning partnership of 117 runs in just nine overs.
This is the second time the Kiwis have reached the final after 2021. They will now face either defending champions India or England in the summit clash.
If the Suryakumar Yadav-led side defeats England in the second semifinal on Thursday, it will be a repeat fixture of the 2025 Champions Trophy final.