A massive run chase is the blessing and the curse of modern-day T20 cricket. On one hand, there is nothing more exciting in all of sports than raining fours and sixes. However, on the other hand, a solid matchup between bat and ball is the essence of this game that we love.
This very matchup is lost in a match where the team batting first makes a truly mammoth total, and then the team batting second chases it down.
Despite how one feels about such games, no one can argue that whenever both teams absolutely dominate with the bat, it makes the match quite memorable.
Today, we will be looking at some of these matches. Especially the biggest successful run chases in T20I history. These games saw two teams on top of their game on pitches flatter than a pancake, a haven for the batters and a nightmare for those with a ball in their hand.
Here are the top 5 highest successful chases in T20I history –
Top 5 Highest Successful Chases In T20I History
5) Bulgaria vs Serbia – Sofia, 2022
One of two matches on this list to not feature any Test-playing nations. This was match 4 of a four-match bilateral series between Bulgaria and Serbia. The home side had already sealed the series with wins in the first three T20Is.
This particular match saw Bulgaria win the toss and decide to field first. The Serbian opening duo crossed the 60-run mark in six overs before one of the players lost his wicket. But it was the second-wicket partnership, worth 152 runs in under 12 overs, which made this game a historic one. Wicketkeeper Leslie Dunbar made 117 off 50 and led his team to a total of 242/4.
In response, Bulgaria lost a wicket in the powerplay, but then, back-to-back partnerships of 90 and 89 runs, the first of which came in five overs, saw the Bulgarians well on their way to chase the target down. A small comeback by Serbia in the death made this match closer than it should have been.
But in the end, with two batters scoring half-centuries at a strike rate of near and over 250, Bulgaria reached a total of 246/5 in 19.3 overs, winning the game by six wickets.
4) Bulgaria vs Gibraltar – Sofia, 2025
For the second time on this list, we go back to Sofia, and Bulgaria is doing incredible things on their home ground. This game was Match 4 of a tri-series in July 2025 played between Bulgaria, Gibraltar, and Turkey, three teams in the European division of the ICC. All the matches of the series were played in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia.
The home side won the toss and decided to field first. No batter from the island nation of Gibraltar scored a century in this match, but two of them scored half-centuries, and the lowest strike rate for any batter who did not get out for a duck was 160. As a result, on the back of opener Philip Raikes’ 71 off 33, Gibraltar put us in a solid total of 243/7.
In response, Bulgaria chased the target down with relative ease. Their No. 2, 3, and 4 batters scored 29, 29, and 70 runs in 24, 27, and 21 balls, respectively, with a strike rate of over 250. Bulgaria chased this mammoth target in mere 14.2 overs with a run rate of over 17, finishing with a total of 244/4. So, unbelievably, the home side was on track to make 340 runs in 20 overs.
3) Australia vs New Zealand – Auckland, 2018
We can now finally discuss two international teams that casual fans of cricket would be aware of. In 2019, New Zealand hosted a brilliant tri-series featuring Australia and England. This series had everything, from teams getting all out for sub-100 totals to teams nearing 250.
The fifth match of the tri-series saw the Kiwis and the Kangaroos face off for the second time in this series. It was the home side that won the toss at Eden Park in Auckland and decided to bat first on a surface conducive to batting.
The opening duo of Martin Guptill and Colin Munro batted together for just over 10 overs and scored 132 runs together. By the time Munro was dismissed in the 11th over, he had made 76 runs off 33 balls. After Munro’s dismissal, Guptill took charge and picked up his strike rate.
On the back of 105 off 54 by Martin Guptill, New Zealand put up a massive total of 243/6 in 20 overs.
In response, the Aussie opening duo of David Warner and D’Arcy Short made 121 runs in just 8.3 overs. Warner’s dismissal in the ninth over came after he scored 59 off 24. Short went on to make 76 runs off 44 balls
In the end, it came down to Glenn Phillips and Aaron Finch, who both played 14 balls and made 31 and 36 runs, respectively. This led to Australia reaching a total of 245/5 in just 18.5 overs, winning the match by five wickets.
2) West Indies vs India – Ranchi, 2026
The latest addition to this list, and the reason it was made in the first place. West Indies chased down a 250-run target and are the only underdog winners on this list.
This was match 2 of a five-game India vs West Indies T20I series between the two. India had comfortably won the first match and expected to win the second one too, especially seeing how flat the track was. The away team won the toss here and decided to bowl first.
India lost the wicket of Abhishek Sharma in the fourth over. But then, the pair of Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan put up a 97-run partnership in the next eight overs. From the 11th to the 15th over, the Indian scoring pace slowed down massively. This was mostly due to Roston Chase, who, in a game where each bowler had an economy of over 10, bowled four overs at six RPO, and took three wickets.
Kishan made 43 off 22, Shivam Dube was dismissed for just seven, and Sanju Samson missed out on a century, making 82 off 41 before losing his wicket.
It was on the back of the finishing flourish provided by Tilak Varma and team captain Shreyas Iyer, who made 44 and 40 runs in 18 balls each, that India managed to reach a gigantic total of 249/5 in 20 overs.
In response, the Windies lost two wickets in the first over, then lost a third before the end of the powerplay. The stars of the show here were skipper Shai Hope and Sherfane Rutherford. The two put up 120 runs in nine overs.
Rutherford too missed out on a ton, making 84 off just 37 balls before being dismissed by Kuldeep Yadav. At the point of this wicket, the score was 178/4.
In the final six overs, Hope paired up with Romario Shepherd, who himself scored an unbeaten 34 off 13, and took the team home in style.
This record-breaking chase was the second-highest run chase in T20Is and the highest against the defending world champions. With his century, Shai Hope also became only the second overseas player after Glenn Maxwell to score a ton in India in all three formats.
1) South Africa vs West Indies – Centurion, 2023
This here is the biggest chase ever in an international T20 and, for some time, was the biggest successful run chase in T20s, full stop. This game, played at the SuperSport Park Cricket Stadium in Centurion, was the 2nd match of a three-T20I series between the two teams. The Windies had already won the first game and went into this one with a series lead.
The away team won the toss and decided to bat first on a flat track. The Windies lost a wicket early, as Brandon King was dismissed for just one run on the third ball of the match. But then, the duo of Kyle Mayers and Johnson Charles put up a 135-run partnership in the next 10 overs.
Mayers made 51 off 27 before his wicket in the 11th over, and Charles kept on going for a few more. He soon reached his century and made 118 off 46 before being dismissed. And with some fine finishing by Romario Shepherd, who remained unbeaten for 41 off 18, the West Indies reached a mountainous total of 258/5 in 20 overs.
In response, South Africa got off to a dream start. The opening pair of Quinton de Kock and Reeza Hendricks batted for almost 11 overs together, during which they made 152 runs. De Kock made 100 off 44 before getting out towards the end of the 11th over.
This partnership made the chase relatively easy for the rest of the Proteas batting order. Hendricks made 68 off 28, while the rest of the batters played small but effective cameos. Skipper Aiden Markram (38 off 21) and Heinrich Klaasen (16 off seven) finished this match off in 18.5 overs, taking the total to 259/4.
South Africa won this match by six wickets and completed the biggest successful chase in T20Is. However, they went on to lose that series with a defeat in the third match.
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