India vs New Zealand rivalry achieves rare ICC finals milestone

The stage is set for a big final in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026. India will face New Zealand in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on March 8.

This match will be historic. India and New Zealand will become the first teams to meet in the finals of three major ICC tournaments — the ICC World Test Championship, the ICC Champions Trophy, and now the ICC Men's T20 World Cup.

Both teams reached the final after strong wins in the semi-finals. India defeated England by seven runs in a high-scoring match at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. At the same time, New Zealand defeated South Africa by nine wickets in Kolkata.

India reached the final after defending a big total of 253/7 against England. Sanju Samson was named Player of the Match after scoring 89 runs from 42 balls. His strong innings helped India post one of the highest totals in a T20 World Cup knockout match. In the final overs, Jasprit Bumrah bowled well, and India’s fielding was sharp, helping the team win by seven runs.

On the other hand, New Zealand had a dominant win against South Africa. After restricting them to 169/8, New Zealand chased the target easily. They reached 173/1 in just 12.5 overs. The star of the match was Finn Allen, who scored a brilliant 100 from only 33 balls. It was the fastest century in men’s T20 World Cup history. His explosive innings helped New Zealand reach their second T20 World Cup final.

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India vs New Zealand rivalry reaches rare ICC finals milestone

The upcoming match in Ahmedabad will be the third ICC final between India and New Zealand. Their first major final was the 2021 ICC World Test Championship Final. In that match, New Zealand defeated India in Southampton and won the title.

The two teams met again in another ICC final at the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. This time, India defeated New Zealand and won the trophy. Now, the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 final will complete a trilogy. It will make India and New Zealand the first teams to meet in the finals of the World Test Championship, Champions Trophy, and T20 World Cup.

Interestingly, the two teams have never met in the final of the ICC Cricket World Cup (ODI). However, they have played against each other in knockout matches. New Zealand defeated India in the semi-final of the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup. Later, India defeated New Zealand in the semi-final of the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup to reach the final.

India vs New Zealand Squads

India: Suryakumar Yadav(C), Sanju Samson, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishan Kishan, Rinku Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Shivam Dube, Abhishek Sharma, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Tilak Varma.

New Zealand: Mitchell Santner (c), Finn Allen, Mark Chapman, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Lockie Ferguson, Matt Henry, Kyle Jamieson, Daryl Mitchell, James Neesham, Glenn Phillips, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Seifert, Ish Sodhi, Cole McConchie 

Reserves: Ben Sears.