Highest seventh-wicket partnership in T20 World Cup matches

T20 World Cup: The champion side always has good batting depth. A team that has a large number of all-rounders who can bat down low is always a blessing. Such players can win a game out of nowhere. But losing the first six wickets early can put more pressure on the lower-order batsmen. So work becomes important.

Usually at number 7 or 8, bowlers mostly come to bat. Hence, it becomes more important for the batting team to have players who can contribute to those numbers with the bat as well. Because to win the World Cup, a team needs multi-dimensional players. However, there are only three occasions when a seventh-wicket partnership has crossed the 50-run mark in an ICC event. Hence, in this article, we will discuss the ten best seventh-wicket partnerships in the T20 World Cup.

1. Mike Hussey and Steve Smith (74) vs Bangladesh in World Cup 2010

The highest partnership was in the 2010 World Cup match between Australia and Bangladesh at Bridgetown. First Australia had a terrible start to the innings. They lost wickets periodically and the Bangladeshi bowlers were all over the place. When Steven Smith played with Mike Hussey, Australia could only play to 65/6. Smith, who started his career as a leg-spinner, was not that well known with his bat in his early days.

However, the two batsmen pulled Australia out of the hole and put on a vital 74-run partnership for the seventh wicket, helping the Men in Yellow to a respectable 141/7. Hussey was unbeaten on 47* and Smith was out after 27 runs. But in the end, the goal was the game-winner. Australia's bowlers kept Bangladesh from scoring and bowled them out for 114 to win the match by 27 runs.

2. Angelo Mathews and K Sangakkara (68*) v Pakistan in T20 World Cup 2009.

It was the last match of the 2009 T20 World Cup between Pakistan and Sri Lanka. During the toss, Sri Lanka chose to bat first after winning the toss. But they didn't get the start they would have hoped for in the final. The Pakistani bowlers were all over them and took the first six wickets for just 70 runs. Sri Lanka looked set to be bowled out for less than 100. But a vital partnership between Angelo Mathews (35*) and Kumar Sangakkara (64*) pulled their team out of trouble.

The two batsmen added 68 runs for the seventh wicket and remained unbeaten till the end. Sri Lanka scored 138/6 in their 20 overs. However, it was never going to be a challenging score against a strong Pakistan team and they chased it down comfortably. The men in green won the final by 8 wickets and it was their first T20 title.

3. George Bailey and Pat Cummins (68) vs West Indies in the 2012 T20I World Cup.

It was the second semi-final of the 2012 T20 World Cup between West Indies and Australia. After winning the toss, West Indies chose to bat first and played aggressively despite the loss of Johnson Charles (10). The Caribbean side posted a mammoth total of 205/4 in their 20 overs. Chris Gayle (75*), DJ Bravo (37*) and Kieron Pollard (38*) were superb with their batting. Chasing the target, Australia lost some quick wickets and six of the leading batsmen returned to the hut for 43 runs.

However, captain George Bailey and Pat Cummins added 68 runs for the seventh wicket and tried to save the game. But that was too big a target for them and Australia were all out for 131 and lost the match by 74 runs. West Indies then reached the final where they defeated Sri Lanka to win the World Cup.

T20 World Cup Highest Seventh Wicket Partnership List

Batters	Partnership	Against	Venue	Year
Mike Hussey and Steve Smith (Australia)	74	Bangladesh	Bridgetown	2010
Gulbadin Naib, Mohammad Nabi (Afghanistan)	70*	Pakistsan	Dubai	2021
Jan Frylinck, JJ Smit (Namibia)	70	Sri Lanka	Geelong	2022
Angelo Mathews and K. Sangakkara (Sri Lanka)	68*	Pakistan	Lord’s	2009
George Bailey and Patt Cummins (Australia)	68	West Indies	Colombo	2012
J Mubarak and G Wijekoon (Sri Lanka)	45*	Kenya	Johannesburg	2007
David Hussey and Mitchell Johnson (Australia)	41	Sri Lanka	Nottingham	2009
Albie Morkel and V. Philander (South Africa)	39	England	Capetown	2007
Misbah-Ul-Haq and Yasir Arafat (Pakistan)	38	India	Durban	2007
KJ Coetzer and RM Haq (Scotland)	38	South Africa	The Oval	2009
H Masakadza and P Utseya (Zimbabwe)	33	England	Cape Town	2007
R Ashwin and Suresh Raina (India)	33	Australia	Colombo	2012