T20 World Cup 2021: Australia clinches maiden title after Marsh-Warner show decimates New Zealand by 8 wickets

By Ayush Gupta | First Published Nov 14, 2021, 10:58 PM IST

Australia managed to trump New Zealand by eight wickets in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021 final in Dubai on Sunday. It is the maiden title win for the Aussies in the competition, while Kiwis' wait continues.

Australia produced a phenomenal batting show as it blazed past its trans-Tasman rival New Zealand by eight wickets in the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup final at the Dubai International Stadium on Sunday. David Warner and Mitchell Marsh's elegant batting display ensured the maiden title win for the Aussies, while the wait for the Kiwis has to continue until next year.

Winning the toss, Australian skipper Aaron Finch opted to field as he moved in with an unchanged XI. In contrast, Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson made a forced change by bringing in Tim Seifert in place of an injured wicketkeeper-batter Devon Conway. NZ lost an early wicket, as pacer Josh Hazlewood dismissed Daryl Mitchell (11) in the fourth over of the Powerplay, with 28 runs on the board.

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Fellow opener Martin Guptill (28) and Williamson (85) put on a 48-run stand for the second wicket, while the latter was also dropped at 21 by Hazlewood at this point. On the 12th, spinner Adam Zampa got rid of Guptill before Williamson and Glenn Phillips (18) put on 68 runs for the third wicket, as the latter fell to Hazlewood in the 18th, at 144.

Hazlewood got rid of Williamson a couple of runs later in the same over, as NZ eventually finished at an above-par total of 172/4. The Aussies put six bowlers into the attack, with Hazlewood grabbing three, while he was also the most economical of the lot. In reply, Australia was off to a shaky start as well, losing Finch (5) in the third over of the PP to pacer Trent Boult, with 15 on the board.

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However, associate opener Warner (53), along with Marsh (77*), put on a requisite 92-run partnership for the second wicket to help Australia build the right platform and stay in the chase. While the former scored his 21st T20I half-century, he was knocked over by Boult in the 13th. Nevertheless, Australia never panicked as Marsh scored his sixth T20I 50, and with Glenn Maxwell (28*), he got the job done, with Australia winning by eight wickets and seven balls to spare.

As for the Kiwis, they utilised six bowlers, with Boult being the only lad to claim the two wickets, besides being the most economical of all. The bowlers did well, but the determinateness of the Aussie batters pushed the Kiwi bowlers onto the backfoot.
Brief scores: NZ 172/4 (Williamson- 85; Hazlewood- 3/16) lost to AUS 173/2 in 18.5 overs (Warner- 53, Marsh- 77; Boult- 2/18) by eight wickets.

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