Portugal Dream of Cricket World Cup Glory After Ending Spain’s Record Run

Spain’s remarkable winning run has finally come to an end. And the team that stopped them was Portugal, the country better known around the world for Cristiano Ronaldo than for cricket. But this time, the battle was not on the football pitch—it was on the cricket field.

Spain’s 24-match unbeaten run in international cricket came to an end as Portugal defeated them by 57 runs. The victory also secured Portugal’s place in the European Qualifier for the 2027 T20 World Cup.

The defeat denied Spain the chance to equal the longest unbeaten run in international cricket. Australia remained unbeaten in 25 consecutive Test matches between 1946 and 1951. In 2009-10, Ricky Ponting’s Australia also went 24 matches unbeaten across all formats.

Spain, however, had already made history with their winning streak. They broke Australia’s record of 20 consecutive international victories, set in 2003, by winning 24 T20 matches in a row between February 2023 and August 18, 2026. For a country best known for football and tennis, Spain’s dominance in cricket has been nothing short of remarkable.

A major factor behind Portugal’s success has been former Australian all-rounder Moises Henriques. After recently announcing his retirement, Henriques joined Portugal’s national team. Under his leadership, Portugal produced an outstanding run in the qualifying tournament, winning all five of their matches to lift the title.

In the final, Portugal posted 160 runs in 20 overs after being sent in to bat first. Henriques was also the tournament’s leading run-scorer, finishing with more than 190 runs across the competition.

Chasing 161, Spain simply had no answers to Portugal’s bowling attack. Their innings collapsed for just 103 runs. Bangladesh-born left-arm spinner Siraj Ullah Khadem played a key role in the victory, taking two wickets for just 19 runs from his four overs and helping trigger Spain’s batting collapse.

The historic victory means Portugal will now join Jersey, Denmark and Scotland in the main European Qualifier for the 2027 tournament. From there, they will have a chance to advance to the Global Qualifier for the 2028 T20 World Cup.

Italy and the Netherlands have already secured their places in the Global Qualifier directly from the European region.

For Portugal, a country synonymous with football and Cristiano Ronaldo, the dream of making it to a cricket World Cup is now looking more real than ever.