About this episode
In this episode of the show, Baldy and Stu look back at the first semifinal of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026, which was played at Eden Gardens between the Black Caps of New Zealand and the Proteas from South Africa.
We start with our instant reactions to a remarkable reversal of form as New Zealand crushed South Africa thanks to an excellent bowling performance and a dominant display by the openers, highlighted by Finn Allen's record-breaking century from just 33 balls.
There's praise for the bowling group of Cole McConchie, Lockie Ferguson, Rachin Ravindra, Mitchell Santner, Matt Henry and Jimmy Neesham, and we re-live the incredible hitting on show as Finn Allen and Tim Seifert powered New Zealand to a nine-wicket win inside 13 overs. We also reflect on South Africa's disappointment after what had been such a fantastic tournament for them up until this game.
To round out the show, we also look ahead to the second semifinal between England and India at Wankhede Stadium. Who will meet the Kiwis in Ahmedabad on Sunday?
We'll be back in your feed again tomorrow with the next instalment of our T20 World Cup coverage. Until then please take the time to give us a like, follow, share or subscribe on all our channels (@toporderpod on Twitter & Facebook, and @thetoporderpodcast on Instagram & YouTube) and a (5-Star!) review at your favourite podcast provider, or tell a friend to download. It really helps others find the show and is the best thing you can do to support us. You can also find all our written content, including our Hall of Fame series, at our website.
You can also dip back into our guest episodes - including conversations with Mike Hesson, Shane Bond and Mike Hussey, current players such as Matt Henry, Sophie Devine and Ish Sodhi, coaches Gary Stead, Jeetan Patel and Luke Wright, as well as Barry Richards, Frankie Mackay, Bharat Sundaresan and many more fascinating people from all across the cricketing world.
And if you'd like to reach out to us with feedback, questions or guest suggestions, get in touch at thetoporderpodcast@gmail.com. Thanks for listening.
0:00 Intro
0:35 New Zealand v South Africa
25:15 India v England preview
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
