India won the third T20I by six wickets with 40 balls remaining at Sky Stadium in Wellington, reaching 199/4 in reply to New Zealand’s 198/3. Abhishek Sharma’s 113 from 38 balls drove a chase in which the hosts could not contain India’s opening pair.
New Zealand rebuild after an early loss
After India chose to bowl, Arshdeep Singh removed Tim Seifert for 2, caught by Axar Patel, leaving New Zealand 4/1 in the second over. Daryl Mitchell’s unbeaten 89 from 52 balls ensured that breakthrough did not define the innings.
Mitchell and Finn Allen added 86 for the second wicket, giving New Zealand a strong recovery. Allen hit five sixes in his 40 from 25 balls before Naman Dhir caught him off Nitish Kumar Reddy at 90/2 in the ninth over. His contribution had given the innings momentum while Mitchell supplied its continuity.
Glenn Phillips then made 17 from 14 balls in a stand of 33 with Mitchell. Axar ended that partnership with a return catch from the last ball of the 12th over, leaving New Zealand 123/3.
That was India’s final breakthrough. Bevon Jacobs contributed an unbeaten 39 from 23 balls, including four fours and a six, as he and Mitchell added an unbroken 75. Mitchell finished with five fours and five sixes, sustaining the innings through both its recovery and its closing partnership.
Arshdeep’s 1/33 from four overs was India’s least expensive return, but New Zealand’s ability to build substantial stands after the early wicket had taken them to a sizeable total.
India’s openers take control of the chase
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s 45 from 19 balls complemented Abhishek’s assault in an opening partnership of 133. Sooryavanshi struck four fours and four sixes before Mitchell caught him off Matthew Fisher at 7.1 overs. By the time New Zealand separated the pair, India had already made most of the ground required.
Abhishek continued with Sanju Samson, adding another 45 for the second wicket. His innings contained nine fours and 11 sixes, leaving New Zealand little room to recover despite the wickets that followed. Glenn Phillips eventually caught him off Kyle Jamieson from the final ball of the 10th over, with India 178/2.
Mitchell Santner offered the clearest resistance with 1/17 from three overs. He had Shreyas Iyer caught by Phillips for 5 at 193/3, contrasting sharply with Jacob Duffy’s wicketless two overs costing 44.
Jamieson then bowled Samson for 18 at the start of the 14th over to finish with 2/45. Those late wickets reduced the margin without changing the direction of the match: Dhir hit a four from his only delivery to complete the chase in 13.2 overs.
India secured the T20I series on the India tour of New Zealand 2026, taking a 3–0 lead with two matches remaining.