The New Zealand cricket team made one change to their line-up, bringing in fast bowler Jacob Duffy for off-spinning all-rounder Cole McConchie, as captain Mitchell Santner won the toss and decided to bowl first against an unchanged India national cricket team in the final of the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday.
India is attempting to capture a third Men’s T20 World Cup title, which would set a new record. Meanwhile, New Zealand are seeking their first-ever triumph in the tournament.
If India succeeds, they would also become the first team to win successive editions and the first to secure the trophy on home ground. New Zealand, notably, have won every match in this tournament while chasing.
Explaining the decision at the toss, Mitchell Santner said the pitch appeared favourable. He added that his side hoped to keep India within reach of a chaseable total.
“The pitch looks pretty good. We will see if it does anything and try to restrict them to a chasable score. Boys are good. This is why we are playing. It did. Great occasion, the semifinal, and the guys will take confidence from that. This is the biggest stage, and everyone is ready,” he said.
India enter the final with a difficult statistic hanging over them: they have never defeated New Zealand in a Men’s T20 World Cup match.
In addition, their two most recent ICC white-ball defeats in Ahmedabad occurred at this venue, the 2023 ODI World Cup final loss to Australia and a Super Eights defeat to South Africa earlier in this tournament.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav confirmed that his team would go into the final without making any changes. Varun Chakaravarthy, therefore, continues in the XI. There had been concerns about his performances in Ahmedabad after he conceded runs since the Super Eights stage.
Suryakumar said he was comfortable batting first and hoped the team would produce an entertaining performance for the spectators.
“Happy to bat first since we have been doing that pretty well. Always good to have runs on the board in the semifinal or a final. It’s history now, a new World Cup, and we are excited for it. It looks full already, and it’s only toss time, and hopefully we will give them a good show,” he said.
During the pitch assessment, Ian Bishop and Eoin Morgan explained that the surface combines red and black soil, which could offer balanced conditions.
The square boundaries measure 70 metres and 68 metres, while the straight boundary extends to 72 metres.
Anti-dew treatment has also been applied to help maintain steady playing conditions. They added that a light grass covering with a slight green tint may provide early assistance for seam and swing bowlers.
Overall conditions will likely favour batting, with limited support likely for spinners. Before the match, the crowd was entertained by musical performances from artists Falguni Pathak, Sukhbir and Ricky Martin.
Playing XIs
India: Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wk), Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah
New Zealand: Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner (captain), Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson, Jacob Duffy
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