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2 min readUpdated: Mar 8, 2026 08:14 PM IST
Sanju Samson in action during T20 World Cup 2026 final vs New Zealand in Ahmedabad. (PHOTO: AP)
Indian opener Sanju Samson broke West Indies’ Marlon Samuels record by registering the highest individual score by any player in a T20 World Cup final during the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup summit clash against New Zealand at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
Samson also bettered compatriot Virat Kohli’s 77, which came in a losing cause against Sri Lanka in the 2014 T20 World Cup final.
FOLLOW LIVE | INDIA VS NEW ZEALAND T20 WORLD CUP 2026 FINAL
Samson also became only the third batter after Kohli and Pakistan’s Shahid Afridi to score a fifty in a semifinal and a final of a T20 World Cup.
Earlier, Abhishek Sharma shed his poor form and stepped up right on time by slamming a half-century in just 18 deliveries. Abhishek’s 50 off 18 balls is the fastest of this World Cup, bettering 19-ball fifties from Aiden Markram, Jacob Bethell and Shimrom Hetmyer. It is also the fastest fifty in a T20 World Cup knockout game
Highest score by a player in the T20 World Cup final
| Player | Runs | SR | Opposition | Ground | Date |
| Sanju Samson | 88* | 200* | v New Zealand | Ahmedabad | 8 Mar 2026 |
| Marlon Samuels (WI) | 85* | 128.78 | v England | Eden Gardens | 3 Apr 2016 |
| KS Williamson (NZ) | 85 | 177.08 | v Australia | Dubai (DICS) | 14 Nov 2021 |
| Marlon Samuels (WI) | 78 | 139.28 | v Sri Lanka | Colombo (RPS) | 7 Oct 2012 |
| MR Marsh (AUS) | 77* | 154 | v New Zealand | Dubai (DICS) | 14 Nov 2021 |
| Virat Kohli (IND) | 77 | 132.75 | v Sri Lanka | Mirpur | 6 Apr 2014 |
| Virat Kohli (IND) | 76 | 128.81 | v South Africa | Bridgetown | 29 Jun 2024 |
| Gautam Gambhir (IND) | 75 | 138.88 | v Pakistan | Johannesburg | 24 Sep 2007 |
| Kumar Sangakkara (SL) | 64* | 123.07 | v Pakistan | Lord’s | 21 Jun 2009 |
| Craig Kieswetter (ENG) | 63 | 128.57 | v Australia | Bridgetown | 16 May 2010 |
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