India will play New Zealand on Sunday in Ahmedabad in an attempt to become the first team to win the T20 World Cup three times, but they will be under tremendous pressure because they are carrying the burden of a whole country.
A team that has already defied the odds by defeating the previously undefeated South Africa by nine wickets to advance to the final stands in the path of Suryakumar Yadav’s team.
Following Finn Allen’s historic 33-ball century in the Kolkata semi-final, New Zealand have the arsenal to defeat the hosts and win their first T20 World Cup.
In addition to the expectations of over 100,000 cricket enthusiasts in a crowded Narendra Modi stadium and hundreds of millions more watching on television, India will also have to endure the weight of history.
The top-ranked T20 team in the world is trying to make history by being the first to win two consecutive T20 World Cups and the first to win the trophy on home soil.
After losing their first Super Eights match to South Africa, India has essentially played three elimination games to get to the final. In crucial matches, they defeated Zimbabwe by 72 runs and chased down 196 to defeat the West Indies and advance to the semi-final match against England on Thursday.
India needed a crucial 18th over from death-bowling master Jasprit Bumrah to repel an England batting attack after scoring a massive 253/7 against Harry Brook’s team. Despite Jacob Bethell’s 105, Bumrah gave up just six runs in his last over to leave England with too much to do, and India hung on to spark loud celebrations.
Leading spinner Varun Chakravarthy and opening batsman Abhishek Sharma are India’s biggest worries. Despite being at the top of the International Cricket Council T20 standings, both have been struggling as the tournament approaches its conclusion.
In the group stage, Abhishek had three straight ducks, and his lone noteworthy score was a fifty against Zimbabwe. At Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, England’s batsmen brutally targeted Chakravarthy, hitting him for 64 runs in his four overs. Since the group stage, he has only claimed four wickets.
After losing to South Africa and England earlier in the competition, Mitchell Santner’s New Zealand has been inconsistent. However, they have enough firepower to defeat India and all of their players are doing well at the right time.
Crucially, since they will be the overwhelming underdogs going into the final, they have nothing to lose. With three fifties in the competition, opener Tim Seifert has been steadily laying the groundwork for players like Allen and Glenn Phillips to go off.
