Watch: Saints in Ayodhya offer special prayers for Team India’s victory in ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Final vs New Zealand

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

Ahead of the big match, saints in Ayodhya offered special prayers for the Indian cricket team on Sunday. They prayed for India’s victory in the final of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026.

The saints carried posters of Indian players and the national flag. They chanted mantras and performed a havan to wish good luck for the Indian team. Similar scenes were also seen in Kanpur and Varanasi, where people offered special prayers for the Indian team. In Varanasi, children from cricket academies took part in havans. In Kanpur, residents performed rituals ahead of the important match.

Watch the video below of saints offering prayers for Team India:

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ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 Final Preview

India are going into the final with a chance to create history. India national cricket team are aiming to become the first team to defend a T20 World Cup title. They also want to become the first host nation to win the tournament and the first team to win three T20 World Cup titles.

For the New Zealand national cricket team, the main challenge will be to control India’s strong batting line-up. They will also have to deal with the accurate bowling of Jasprit Bumrah.

India and New Zealand reached the final through different paths. Both teams had strong batting performances in their semi-final matches. New Zealand lost to South Africa in the group stage and to England in the Super Eight stage. However, they were very strong in the semi-final. After restricting South Africa to 169/8, New Zealand chased the target easily and won by nine wickets in just 12.5 overs. Finn Allen scored a brilliant 33-ball century, which was the fastest hundred in T20 World Cup history.

The Suryakumar Yadav-led team were excellent in the group stage. Their only loss came against South Africa in the first Super Eight match. In the semi-final against the England national cricket team, India scored a huge total of 253/7. England tried hard but fell short by seven runs in a thrilling match.

In past T20 World Cup meetings, New Zealand have had the advantage. They defeated India in 2007, 2016 and 2021. However, recent form favours India. The host nation recently beat New Zealand 4-1 in a T20I series in India.

Squads

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

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