Kamal Ghorui
Finn Allen produced one of the most explosive knocks of IPL 2026 as Kolkata Knight Riders crushed Delhi Capitals by eight wickets. Chasing a modest 143-run target, the New Zealand batter stayed unbeaten on 100 off just 47 balls, smashing five fours and 10 sixes to finish the game in only 14.2 overs.With this innings, Allen created history by becoming the first New Zealand batter ever to score three T20 centuries in a calendar year.
Earlier this year, he had already scored a century for Perth Scorchers in the Big Bash League and another hundred against South Africa in the T20 World Cup semifinal — a 33-ball blitz which became the fastest century in the history of ODI and T20 World Cups combined.He is now only the second Kiwi after Brendon McCullum to score an IPL century and also became the fourth KKR batter to hit a hundred in the tournament after McCullum, Venkatesh Iyer and Sunil Narine.Before Allen’s fireworks, KKR’s bowlers did the hard work on a difficult surface. Delhi Capitals started well through Pathum Nissanka, who scored a quick 50 off 29 balls, but their innings slowed down badly in the middle overs. KKR’s spin attack, led by Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy and Kartik Tyagi, kept things tight and picked wickets regularly.Delhi managed only 142/8 in 20 overs, with Ashutosh Sharma’s 39 providing some late resistance.KKR lost two early wickets, but Allen completely took control after settling in. Interestingly, he played the match as an Impact Substitute for Varun Chakravarthy. His clean hitting made the chase look effortless as Delhi bowlers had no answer to his attacking strokeplay.Allen now has 905 T20 runs this year at a strike rate close to 195, underlining his incredible form in 2026.
