Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], February 8 (ANI): New Zealand opener batter Tim Seifert completed 2000 runs in T20 Internationals en route to his match-winning knock of 65 runs off 42 balls against Afghanistan in Chennai on Sunday.

New Zealand defeated Afghanistan by five wickets in both teams' first match of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026, at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Chasing a challenging target of 183 runs against last edition's semi-finalists, New Zealand batter hit seven fours and three sixes. Notably, the win also marked New Zealand recording their highest successful run-chase in the T20 World Cup history.

Seifert became the fifth Kiwi batter to reach the 2000-run mark in the shortest format. He took 1395 balls to reach the milestone, which is also the fifth fastest for any batter from a full-member nation. Suryakumar Yadav is the fastest to reach 2000 runs in just 1164 balls.

After receiving his Player of the Match award, Seifert said, 'Yeah, personally, it's always nice to start the tournament with a few runs under your belt. But the main thing is we got the win. Tough conditions as well out there. Lost a couple of early wickets, so it's nice to get the job done. For us, myself and Finn, we always looked to try and put pressure on the bowlers and we thought pace was going to be easier than spin. And then we just adapted throughout the innings there. And then I thought sometimes the spin actually came a little bit easier than the seam. So it went my way, it's all about the momentum and who you're going to target throughout the innings,' according to Cricbuzz.

Despite a double-strike from Mujeeb Ur Rahman that threatened to derail the chase early, a composed half-century from Seifert and an explosive cameo from Glenn Phillips ensured the Black Caps crossed the line comfortably.

Chasing 183, New Zealand's innings began in chaotic fashion. Mujeeb Ur Rahman turned the game on its head in the second over, removing both Finn Allen (1) and Rachin Ravindra (0) on consecutive deliveries. At 14/2, Afghanistan looked to be bossing the game.

Earlier, Afghanistan won the toss and opted to bat first. A masterclass in middle-overs acceleration from Gulbadin Naib propelled Afghanistan to a formidable 182/6 in their opening Group D fixture against New Zealand. Despite a sluggish start and a double-strike from Lockie Ferguson, the Afghans found their rhythm to post a total that looks set to test the Black Caps. (ANI)