India rout New Zealand to Clinch record third T20 World Cup

Last updated: 11.31 p.m.

Mar.08, Colombo (Mirror Sports) - India stormed to a record third ICC Men’s T20 World Cup title with a commanding 96-run victory over New Zealand in Sunday’s final, successfully defending the trophy in front of a packed home crowd in Ahmedabad.

Led by captain Suryakumar Yadav, the hosts became the first team to retain the T20 World Cup and the first to lift the trophy on home soil, with more than 86,000 fans filling the Narendra Modi Stadium for the one-sided decider.

Sanju Samson set the tone with a blistering 89 off 46 balls as India piled up a daunting 255-5 after being sent in to bat. The opener struck five fours and eight sixes and shared a rapid 98-run stand with Abhishek Sharma, who smashed 52 from just 21 deliveries.

Samson then combined with Ishan Kishan, whose 54 off 25 balls kept the scoring surge alive as India surged past 200 with overs to spare.

New Zealand briefly fought back when Jimmy Neesham removed Samson, Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav in the same over, but Shivam Dube’s unbeaten 26 off eight balls in the final over pushed India beyond the 250 mark.

Chasing a massive target, New Zealand never gained momentum. Axar Patel struck early to remove Finn Allen, while Tim Seifert counterattacked with a quick 52 off 26 balls before falling to Varun Chakravarthy.

Jasprit Bumrah then delivered the decisive blows, claiming 4-15 and striking twice in successive balls as the Black Caps collapsed to 159 all out in 19 overs.

Captain Mitchell Santner top-scored with 43, but New Zealand were left to reflect on their second T20 World Cup final defeat after losing the 2021 title match to Australia.

The triumph also erased memories of India’s loss to Australia in the 2023 ODI World Cup final at the same venue, sealing a dominant title defence for the hosts.