India vs New Zealand 3rd T20I: Abhishek Sharma's 113 Off 38 Seals Series 3-0 After Record 118-Run Powerplay

Photo: AP via Outlook India

India beat New Zealand by six wickets in the third T20I in Wellington on Tuesday, 27 October 2026, as Abhishek Sharma smashed 113 off just 38 balls and sealed the five-match series 3-0 with two games still to play.

Chasing 199, India reached 199 for 4 in only 13.2 overs, with 40 balls still left. The chase turned into a record show in the first six overs, when India piled up 118 without losing a wicket, the highest powerplay total ever in men's T20 internationals.

Main News Report: India vs New Zealand 3rd T20I

New Zealand batted first after India captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and chose to bowl. Daryl Mitchell carried the home side with a career-best 89 not out off 52 balls, and New Zealand closed on 198 for 3. Finn Allen hit 40 off 25 balls and Bevon Jacobs finished unbeaten on 39 off 23 balls. For India, Arshdeep Singh, Axar Patel and Nitish Kumar Reddy took one wicket each.

The chase then broke open from the first ball. Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, sent in to open together with Sanju Samson pushed down to No. 3, put on 133 for the first wicket in 7.1 overs. Sooryavanshi made 45 off 19 balls, with four fours and four sixes, before Matthew Fisher broke the stand.

Abhishek kept going. He reached his fifty in 15 balls and his hundred in 35 balls, finishing with nine fours and 11 sixes. He was named player of the match. Kyle Jamieson finally had him caught by Glenn Phillips at deep mid-wicket, but by then India needed only 21 runs. Shreyas Iyer made 5 and Sanju Samson made 18, and Tilak Varma and Naman Dhir saw India home.

ESPNcricinfo's scorecard confirms the result: India won by six wickets, with 40 balls remaining, and now lead the five-match series 3-0.

The key figures from the match:

• New Zealand 198 for 3 in 20 overs, Daryl Mitchell 89 not out, Finn Allen 40, Bevon Jacobs 39 not out.
• India 199 for 4 in 13.2 overs, Abhishek Sharma 113, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 45, Sanju Samson 18.
• Powerplay: India 118 for 0 in six overs, a new world record in men's T20Is.
• India reached 100 in five overs and 50 in 2.2 overs.
• Abhishek Sharma: 113 off 38 balls, nine fours, 11 sixes, hundred in 35 balls.

Background Context

India came into this game 2-0 up in the series, so a win here ended the series as a contest. New Zealand had to win to stay alive. At halfway in their own innings, the hosts looked on track, reaching 100 for 2 after 10 overs. India's bowlers then pulled the scoring back at the death, and New Zealand managed only 63 runs in the last seven overs.

The old powerplay record belonged to Romania, who made 116 without loss against Serbia in Sofia in 2021. The Times of India reports that India's 118 for 0 passed that mark, and that India's 100 in five overs is the fastest team hundred by a Full Member nation in men's T20Is.

Abhishek's hundred was his fourth in T20 internationals. Outlook India's live coverage notes that it took him to four T20I hundreds, level with Suryakumar Yadav's tally in the format. His fastest hundred before this one came in 30 balls against Afghanistan in Delhi earlier in 2026, so the 35-ball effort in Wellington sits just behind his own best.

For a sense of how rare this chase was, Outlook also lists the most balls left in a winning chase of 190 or more: Estonia had 42 balls left against Cyprus in 2024, and India now sit next on that list with 40 balls left in Wellington.

Reactions and Statements

India captain Shreyas Iyer praised the young openers after the game. He called the batting "absolutely stunning" and said the way the players took on the occasion was "exceptional". He also said that even when he went out to bat, the ball was still moving around, which made the openers' hitting harder to explain.

Iyer added that India's plan with the ball late in New Zealand's innings was to keep the hosts under 200, using wide yorkers once the batters started to find the stands. That plan worked: New Zealand finished two runs short of 200, and the target still proved far too small.

There was no hiding how one-sided the chase felt. New Zealand's bowlers went for 26 runs in the first over alone, bowled by Jacob Duffy, and the hosts never found a way back once Abhishek and Sooryavanshi started to clear the ropes at will.

Why This News Matters

This was not just another series win. It was a record-breaking night that changed the book on how a T20 powerplay can go. A team had never before reached 118 in the first six overs of a men's T20 international, and India did it while chasing 199 against a full-strength home side.

For cricket fans in Pakistan, the game is also a useful yardstick. Pakistan's own white-ball side is in the middle of a home tri-series, and Shadab Khan's unbeaten 113 sealed a one-wicket win over England in Lahore only two days ago to book a place in that final. The gap between a 199 chase finished in 13.2 overs and the low, tense games Pakistan have played at home shows how fast the short format is moving, and how much batting firepower now decides games in the first six overs.

In plain terms, the powerplay is now where matches are won. Teams that score big in those six overs put the chasing side, or the side batting second, under pressure from the start. India did that in Wellington, and New Zealand had no answer once the first wicket stayed down for 7.1 overs.

The result also keeps the spotlight on Abhishek Sharma as the most destructive opener in world T20 cricket right now. Four hundreds, a 35-ball hundred here, and 11 sixes in one innings will take some beating in the two games still to come in this series.

Future Developments

Two matches remain in the five-match series, with India already 3-0 up. New Zealand will play for pride and for a way back into form, while India can test their bench and give game time to players who have sat out so far. The final two games will also show whether New Zealand's bowlers can find a plan for Abhishek, who has now hurt them in three straight games.

Back home, Pakistan's tri-series continues in Lahore, with the final set for 31 October. Pakistan have also named a 14-member Test squad for the Sri Lanka series, so the home season stays busy after the tri-series ends. Pakistan wore pink jerseys against England in Lahore for breast cancer awareness in their last home game before the tri-series run-in.

For this series, the next question is simple: can anyone stop India from making it 5-0, or will New Zealand find one win to break the run?

Sources

• ESPNcricinfo, New Zealand vs India, 3rd T20I, Wellington, match result and scorecard
• The Times of India, India script jaw-dropping record in 3rd T20I win over New Zealand
• Outlook India, India vs New Zealand 3rd T20I live score and match report

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