Ahmedabad, March 8 Veteran seamer Matt Henry said New Zealand still believe in their batting strength despite India posting a formidable 255/5 in the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup final. On a flat, mixed-surface pitch, Sanju Samson (89), Ishan Kishan (54), and Abhishek Sharma (52) led India to a massive 255/5, the highest score in a T20 World Cup final.
“Obviously, that’s a tough situation. We would have liked to have kept them to probably under 240, but we still have the firepower and the belief. So, I think for us, the way we start, hopefully we can get a good read of the wicket and put them under some pressure,” Henry said in a mid-innings chat with the broadcasters.
New Zealand’s plan of using slower balls proved too costly, as India’s top three batters easily picked them up and regularly dispatched them over the boundary ropes. Henry explained that the bowling plan had been to reduce the pace early against India’s big-hitting batters.
“Obviously, with the way they liked the pace coming onto the ball. The plan was obviously to take a bit of pace away from them. They did that pretty well. For us, it’s just a little disappointing, but the way we managed to squeeze it back from there in that middle phase, we gave ourselves a fighting chance. At the end of the day, we’re not out of this. We believe in that,” he added.
Henry also felt that New Zealand’s batters could learn from India’s batting approach. “Well, I think if you look at the way they started, they actually got a read of the wicket. Then, from there, they actually looked to accelerate and put us under a lot of pressure. So obviously, it didn’t look like when you’re coming out from ball one, giving yourself a couple of balls. But for us, it's frustrating, but I think we still back our boys to get this done.”
