Australia won by 8 wkts
PLAYER OF THE MATCH : Mitchell Marsh
Batter
Bowler
It was a tournament that defied all predictions, if not the toss. But Kane Williamson was the first to admit they were outplayed today by a superb team. New Zealand have had a brilliant campaign themselves, and it's a team that's going from strength to strength in all formats under Williamson. They weren't able to finish the job though, as Neesham would say. The silverware goes to Australia who make another addition to their cabinet. That's all we have for you. It's goodnight and goodbye from Sagar Chawla on behalf of Vineet Anantharaman, Rishi Roy, MS Ramakrishnan, Abhinand Raghavendran and Siva.
Champagne, fireworks, confetti, ecstasy as Finch lifts the trophy. You heard it from Warner - this is as big as the 2015 win for them, and the celebrations are only kicking off as Australia wakes up to the news. There's a barrage of fireworks that don't seem to stop. What a night!
Here's a stat roundup, courtesy Deepu Narayanan:
Australia wins in ICC events:
ODI World Cup: 1987, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2015
Champions Trophy: 2006, 2009
T20 World Cup: 2021
Winning U19, 50-over & 20-over World Cups:
Yuvraj Singh (2000, 2011, 2007)
Mitchell Marsh & Josh Hazlewood (2010, 2015, 2021)
Teams beating an opponent in ODI World Cup, Champions Trophy & T20 World Cup finals:
West Indies beat England (1979, 2004, 2016)
Australia beat New Zealand (2015, 2009, 2021) [Martin Guptill was part of each of the three finals]
Player of the Match in T20 WC final:
Irfan Pathan (3/16)
Shahid Afridi (54* & 1/20)
Craig Kieswetter (63)
Marlon Samuels (78 & 1/15)
Kumar Sangakkara (52*)
Marlon Samuels (85*)
Mitchell Marsh (77*)
Player of the Tournament in T20 WCs:
Shahid Afridi (2007)
Tillakaratne Dilshan (2009)
Kevin Pietersen (2010)
Shane Watson (2012)
Virat Kohli (2014)
Virat Kohli (2016)
David Warner (2021)
Warner is the second player to win Player of the Tournament from the winning team after Pietersen in 2010.
Finch: This is huge. To be the first Australian team to be able to do it. So proud. We knew our backs were against the wall. We had some great individual performances, some great team performances. Can't believe people wrote him off saying he was done (Warner). That's when he plays his best cricket. Was almost like poking the bear. The player of the tournament for me (Zampa). Mitch Marsh - what a way to start his innings today. Wade coming into this game with an injury cloud but got a job done. Stoinis did the business.
Plenty of smiles from the Australian players as they walk up for their medals
Williamson: We were trying to get a platform and the surface was holding a fraction. But typical to here in Dubai. It was nice to build some partnerships and get what we thought was a competitive total. Only to be chased superbly by Australia. They're a fantastic side. We certainly made every effort. Guys came out and committed to their plans. They didn't give an inch really. Really proud of our team's efforts throughout. Came here in the final and gave it our best shot but it wasn't enough. Conditions varied a lot from venue to venue but we adjusted well. Nice to get to the big dance. Credit to Australia. Today they really turned it on. High hopes coming into this game. Never nice. Winning and losing are two possible outcomes.
New Zealand line up for their medals. It says runners-up again unfortunately. Huge cheers from the crowd as Williamson's name is announced.
David Warner, Player of the Tournament: Always felt really well. Didn't get much time in the middle in the two practice matches obviously. But for me it was about going back to basics. Going to hard, synthetic wickets and try to hit some balls. Definitely up there with 2015. Being part of the World Cup final against England a decade ago definitely hurt. These guys are a great bunch of guys. Great support staff, great team, great support back home. Just wanted to put on a great spectacle for everyone. Bit of nerves around with a good score on the board. Just great to see the guys deliver.
Mitchell Marsh, Player of the Match: Lot of people say this but I really don't have words right now. An amazing six weeks with this group. Coaching staff came up to me in the West Indies and said you'll bat three for this tournament/series. Absolutely jumped at the idea of that. Done a little bit of that for the Scorchers. I must thank everyone in the supportstaff for backing me. Not a whole lot of thinking that goes into that (first ball for six). Just wanted to go out there and have a presence. Big Marcus Stoinis always talks about having a presence.
It's not often Australia aren't considered heavy favourites for any trophy, but they weren't this time. And after the England defeat the snipers were out. All sorts of questions about the way they've rotated players in T20Is not allowing for consistency, their selections, and everything else. But they've turned it around in style, finding heroes for every occasion. It was Wade in the semifinal, and Marsh today. Not to forget Warner who stepped up on both nights. Here come the presentations.
Justin Langer: Everyone that wins a World Cup says it's hard to process, it's hard to put in words, but this is such a wonderful group of people. Every coach and every captain says the same but we have got some amazing cricketers here. We haven't had a chance to play together for different reasons for the last 12 months. When we all got back together, it was almost like a reunion. There are so many close relationships there, a very special moment for everyone. We knew when we came together how much talent we had. There's enormous talent in the team. When we were in the West Indies and Bangladesh, there were a few missing pieces, Mitch Marsh took one of those pieces and he's been brilliant. We also embraced fun. In these situations, when everyone's talking about bubble, these guys have had so much fun on and off the ground. In this form of game, you actually it's important to have fun and enjoy, the guys have done that. I think that was a really important part of the success here. Zamps (Adam Zampa) puts a smile on my face everytime because he's a little bit different and he's a little bit hippie but he's so competitive, he's been so good in this form of the game. We see leg-spinners having an impact around the world and he's doing that for Australia. Josh Hazlewood - he didn't play the last one-day WC because he had some back issues. He's been sublime here, it's been a great team effort.
Steven Smith: It means a lot. We have worked hard for a long time and it is honour to be here with the boys and take the trophy home. Warner's last two weeks have been amazing. A lot of people were writing him off. He came in with exceptional intent and took the game away at the start.
Mitchell Starc: It's not been an ideal lead up. But this is the closest the guys were and it has shown in the way we played our cricket. Different guys in different games and the closeness with the guys has taken us through. Zampa has been the best bowler by far in white ball over the last two years. We know how to bowl around him. The bowling group just know our roles a lot clearer.
Adam Zampa: I just tried to bowl to my strength, to the best of my abilities. I knew the wickets are going to be slow. I bowled in some good times, we won tosses and bowled with a dry ball. Tried to get wickets and tried to defend when needed. Lot of credit to them (support staff). Preparation from their side has been great. This is their win as well.
Glenn Maxwell: He (Zampa) has been a superstar in this format as well as one-day cricket for a long period of time. I have had the pleasure of having him at the Stars and watched him grow into the player he is. To watch him bring all his talent straight into international cricket, he's fitted in so well. In the last 3 years, as a leg-spinner, I don't think there haven't been many better in the world. (On his personal form heading into the tournament) It was perfect, I was able to give myself a few days off before the tournament to freshen up. I was hitting the ball really well, I wasn't required a whole lot. It was nice to be out there and hit the winning runs.