Batters with most 80-plus scores in a T20 WC edition
What's the story
Indian batting ace Sanju Samson has etched his name in the history of ICC T20 World Cups with some extraordinary performances in the 206 edition. Despite being dropped early on, Samson made a strong comeback and played crucial innings that helped India lift the title. He recorded 80-plus scores in each of his last three outings. On this note, we list down batters to register the most 80-plus scores in a T20 WC edition.
#1
Sanju Samson - 3 in 2026
Samson's phenomenal run in the tournament was laced with three scores of 80-plus on the bounce. The opener made an unbeaten 97 in the virtual semi-final against West Indies. He then made 89 in semi-final against England, and another 89 in final against New Zealand. Samson overall finished with 321 runs across five innings to claim the Player-of-the-Tournament award (SR: 199.37). Samson finished the record-breaking campaign with 24 sixes - most by an batter in a T20 WC edition.
DYK
Samson became the first player with this feat
Notably, Samson became the third player to score a half-century in the semi-finals and finals of a T20 World Cup edition. He joined Pakistan's Shahid Afridi (in 2009) and India's Virat Kohli (in 2014). NZ's Tim Seifert later joined this list. However, Samson is the only one among these names to register 80-plus scores in both knock-out matches. His 89 against NZ is the highest individual score in a T20 WC final.
#2
Mahela Jayawardene - 3 in 2010
Overall, Samson became only the second player ever to register three 80-plus scores in a single edition of the tournament. The first was Sri Lankan legend Mahela Jayawardene during the 2010 T20 World Cup. He made 80 versus NZ and followed it up with a 100 against Zimbabwe. Jayawardene narrowly missed out on another hundred against West Indies (98*). All these knocks came in back-to-back matches.
List
Other batters with multiple such scores
Only five other batters besides Samson and Jayawardene have recorded multiple 80-plus scores in a T20 WC event (2 each). India's Virat Kohli and Bangladesh's Tamim Iqbal recorded two such scores each in the 2016 event. Pakistan's Sahibzada Farhan, NZ's Finn Allen, and South Africa's Aiden Markram made multiple 80-plus scores in the 2026 competition.