Nail-biting finishes: Every successful last-ball run chase at Men’s T20 World Cup

The ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is set to take place in the West Indies and USA from 1 June, with a record 20 teams battling it out for the prestigious silverware.

From the Netherlands pulling off a heist against England to India producing a memorable win against arch-rivals Pakistan on the back of a Virat Kohli masterclass, the T20 World Cup has witnessed the impossible.

Let us look back to every successful last-ball run-chase in the tournament's history.

Netherlands vs England (2009)

Netherlands were the first side to achieve this feat in the tournament by stunning England in 2009.

Batting first, England started strong, courtesy of impressive knocks from both their openers, Ravi Bopara (46 runs in 34 balls) and Luke Wright (71 runs in 49 balls), but with his experience, Ryan ten Doeschate managed to turn the tide of the match in favour of the underdogs, picking up both the wickets. England found it difficult to recover, managing to score 162/5.

With James Anderson and Stuart Broad leading the bowling attack for England, chasing a target of 163 seemed tough for the Dutch. Within the first four overs, Netherlands had lost their openers - Alexei Kervezee and Darron Reekers - and the third wicket of Bas Zuiderent fell soon after.

Just when the match looked all but over for the batting team, an anchoring knock from Tom de Grooth (49 runs in 30 balls) helped Netherlands steady the ship and eventually, with two runs required off the last ball of the match, Netherlands pulled off a historic win at Lord’s against the hosts, capitalising on an overthrow from Stuart Broad.

Sri Lanka vs India (2010)

The next iconic last-ball chase took place between the two Asian giants – Sri Lanka and India. Gautam Gambhir (41 runs in 32 balls) and Suresh Raina (63 runs in 47 balls) helped India set a target of 164 runs for their neighbours, scraping through a brilliant spell from Lasith Malinga, where the right-arm fast bowler picked up two wickets in his four overs, conceding merely 25 runs.

Stepping up to bat, Sri Lanka lost both their openers in the first two overs of the innings but steady knocks from Tillakaratne Dilshan (33 runs in 26 balls), Kumar Sangakkara (46 runs in 33 balls), and Angelo Mathews (46 runs in 37 balls) helped stabilise the team. With the match almost slipping out of their hand, an explosive innings from Chamara Kapugedera (37 runs in 16 balls) helped Sri Lanka get past the finishing line with a last-ball six.

Ireland vs Zimbabwe (2014)

In 2014, Ireland successfully pulled off a last-ball run-chase against Zimbabwe in the group stage.

A toe-to-toe encounter between the two sides showcased a dramatic fixture with Ireland bowlers Andy McBrine and George Dockrell displaying exceptional skills, picking up a couple of wickets each, conceding 26 runs and 18 runs respectively. A captain’s knock from Brendan Taylor (59 runs in 46 balls) took Zimbabwe to a competitive total of 163/5.

In their chase, Ireland’s openers, captain William Porterfield (31 runs in 23 balls) and Paul Stirling (60 runs in 34 balls) saw the team take control of the chase but a four-wicket haul from Tinashe Panyangara blew the match wide open. With four runs required of the final over, Ireland managed to scramble past Zimbabwe with three wickets in hand.

Zimbabwe vs Netherlands (2014)

Having failed to defend their score in a last-ball thriller against Ireland in the same edition, Zimbabwe made up for it by identically overcoming Netherlands – winning on the final ball.

Following a poor display from the Netherlands top-order, and a brilliant spell with the ball from Zimbabwe’s Prosper Utseya, who picked up two wickets in his four overs conceding only 24 runs, a responsible knock from Tom Cooper (72 runs in 58 balls) helped the Netherlands finish off their innings with 140 runs on the scoreboard.

Getting on with the chase, Hamilton Masakadza (43 runs in 45 balls), and Brendan Taylor (49 runs in 39 balls) gave Zimbabwe a steady, but a brilliant two-wicket spell from Pieter Seelaar, pulling the match to the last ball. With one needed off one ball, Vusi Sibanda finished it off in style with a six.

India vs Pakistan (2022)

In 2022, India scripted one of the most memorable finishes, beating Pakistan in a last-ball thriller against the odds.

Batting first, Pakistan got off to a wobbly start with both their openers, Babar Azam, and Mohammad Rizwan, falling prey to Arshdeep Singh. But a stable display from Shan Masood (52 runs in 42 balls) and Iftikhar Ahmed (51 runs in 34 balls) helped the team set a 160-run target.

Taking the pitch to chase down the target, KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma failed to make their mark but an exceptional performance from Virat Kohli, partnered with a steady knock from Hardik Pandya (40 off 37 balls) kept India alive in the match.

With 13 runs required off the last three balls, it was Pakistan who were the favourites to take home a win, but a no ball from Mohammad Nawaz turned things around as Kohli hit it for a six, bringing down their target to six runs off three balls. In the final ball of the game, Ravichandran Ashwin kept calm and lofted the ball over mid-off to help his team cross the finishing line to one of their most memorable victories.