Highest 5th wicket contribution during T20 World Cup

T20 World Cup: The next T20 World Cup is around the corner and all the teams are gearing up for one of the biggest ICC events. Cricket lovers are eagerly waiting for the multinational tournament. Fans love to see batsmen hitting the ball for boundaries. But the biggest challenge for any team is choosing the right combination for the match. And the role of middle-order batsmen becomes more important in this case.

Because losing the early goal will put all the pressure on the No. 5 and 6 strap farm. So their role becomes more difficult. It's not easy to score. Because batsmen get very few balls in the order in T20 cricket. But there is a case where 5- and 6-year-old batsmen have made significant contributions in helping their team get over the line. Hence, in this article, we will discuss the ten best fifth-wicket partnerships in the T20 World Cup.

1. Shoaib Mallick and Misbah-Ul-Haq (119*) vs Australia in the 2007 World Cup.

Interestingly, there has been only one instance of a fifth-wicket partnership breaking the 100-run mark in a World Cup. It was also the first edition in Johannesburg in 2007. It was the 18th match of the tournament between Australia and Pakistan. The Austrians batted first and scored 164/7 runs in their 20 overs. Chasing the target, the men in green lost their first four batsmen for 46 and Australia were all over Pakistan. It looked like the Aussies would have an easy victory.

But something else was waiting for them. Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik and Misbah-ul-Haq came into the field and started scoring runs. The two batsmen added an unbeaten match partnership of 119 runs to seal the deal for their team. In the end, Pakistan chased down the target without losing another wicket and with five balls to spare. That 119-run partnership remains a World Cup record.

2. Mohammad Nabi and Samiullah Shinwari (98) against Zimbabwe in the 2016 World Cup.

It was the ninth match of the 2016 World Cup between Afghanistan and Zimbabwe in Nagpur. At the time of the toss, Afghanistan decided to bat first after winning the toss. But the decision was not successful as they lost their first four wickets in just 63 runs. Mohammad Shahzad, the only opener, scored 40 runs. This brought Mohammad Nabi and Samiullah Shinwari to the crease. Both batsmen played cautiously.

The two batsmen added 98 runs for the fifth wicket to guide their team. They helped the Afghanistan team to a good score of 186/6 in 20 overs. In Zimbabwe, the Afghan bowlers dominated the target chase. They were bowled out for 127 runs, giving Afghanistan a 59-run victory. Nabi was the 'man of the match' with 52 with the bat and 1/14 with the ball.

3. Eoin Morgan and Luke Wright (95) against West Indies in the 2010 World Cup

It was the 8th match of the 2010 World Cup between England and the West Indies. West Indies won the toss and elected to bowl first. The English team had a quiet, decent start with the first three batsmen doing well but nobody carrying it and scoring. This restricted England to 88/4. And with few runs left, England looked to be in trouble. The partnership of Eoin Morgan (55) and Luke Wright (45*) turned out to be a match-saving partnership.

The two batsmen added 95 runs for the fifth wicket to pull their team out of the hole. England scored 191/5 in their 20 overs. However, it started raining during the middle innings and the match was reduced to six overs. West Indies were set a target of 60 runs in their six overs, which was relatively easy for the strong batting line-up. In the end West Indies won by 8 wickets using the D/L method.

T20 World Cup Highest Fifth Wicket Partnership List

Batters	Partnership	Against	Venue	Year
Shoaib Mallik and Misbah-Ul-haq (Pakistan)	119*	Australia	Johannesburg	2007
Mohammad Nabi and Samiullah Shinwari (Afghanistan)	98	Zimbabwe	Nagpur	2016
Eoin Morgan and Luke Wright (England)	95	West Indies	Providence	2010
KIC Asalanka and Bhanuka Rajapaksa (Sri Lanka)	86	Bangladesh	Sharjah	2021
MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma (India)	85	South Africa	Durban	2007
MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh (India)	84	Australia	Dhaka	2014
D Bravo and Ramnaresh Sarwan (West Indies)	77	Sri Lanka	Nottingham	2009
Jimmy Neesham and Glenn Phillips (New Zealand)	76*	Namibia	Sharjah	2021
Jos Buttler and Joe Root (England)	75	South Africa	Mumbai	2016
SPD Smith and SR Watson (Australia)	74*	Pakistan	Mohali	2016