IND vs NZ Final: How Has Team India Performed in T20 World Cup Finals So Far? | WATCH

India are all set to take on New Zealand in the final of the T20 World Cup 2026 in Ahmedabad on Sunday. The Men in Blue will step into the summit clash as the defending champions after they won the title in 2024 in Barbados. New Zealand, on the other side, look for their first T20I World Cup. 

The two sides have met each other thrice in T20 World Cup fixtures and the Blackcaps have won on all three occasions. Talking about, the ICC tournament finals, India have locked horns with the Kiwis thrice. The first instance came back in 2000 when they faced each other in Knockout trophy final. 

New Zealand defeated India to clinch the trophy. In 2021, India and New Zealand played each other in the WTC final. The Kane Williamson-led side emerged victorious in the inaugural edition. The Indian team finally broke the jinx in 2025 when they defeated New Zealand in the Champions Trophy final. 

Here we take a look at India’s performance in the T20 World Cup finals. 

2007- IND vs PAK 

India met arch-rivals Pakistan in the final of the inaugural T20 World Cup. The contest went down the wire and finished in a thrilling manner as India lifted the cup under MS Dhoni’s captaincy. The Men in Blue put up 157/5 in 20 overs, thanks to Gautam Gambhir’s 75 off 54 and a late surge from Rohit Sharma who chipped in with 30* off 16. 

Later, bowlers chipped in with early wickets and reduced Pakistan to 77/6 but Misbah-ul-Haq kept Pakistan in the chase. The side eventually needed 13 off 6. Dhoni handed the ball to Joginder Sharma who started off with a wide and was then hit for a maximum on the second legitimate delivery to bring down the equation to 6 needed off 4. Misbah then went for a scoop on the third delivery but miscued his stroke and was caught by S Sreesanth at short fine leg. He was the last batter to get dismissed as Pakistan were bowled out for 152 and India registered a win by 5 runs. 

2014- IND vs SL

India made it to the final of the T20 World Cup in 2014. This was the second time that India were into the finals of a T20 World Cup under Dhoni. Batting first, India could only manage 130/4 in 20 overs despite Virat Kohli’s 77 off 58. Later, Kumar Sangakkara’s 52* off 35 helped the Lankan Lions chased down the target by 6 wickets and with more than two overs the spare. 

2024- IND vs SA

India made it to the final of a T20 World Cup after almost a decade when they faced South Africa in the 2024 edition. India batted first again in Barbados and hammered 176/7 in 20 overs, riding on Virat Kohli’s 76 off 59. Axar Patel contributed with 47 off 31 while Shivam Dube chipped in with 27 off 16. 

South Africa were in the hunt and needed 30 off 30 when Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Hardik Pandya joined hands and bowled economical spells to put a break on the opposition’s scoring rate. With 16 needed in the final over, David Miller played one in the air and Suryaumar Yadav held on to a brilliant catch at long off. India eventually won by 7 runs and lifted the trophy for the second time. 

This also broke the trophy drought. India had won an ICC trophy in 2013 before this and a T20 World Cup in 2007. 

Also Read: T20 World Cup 2026 Final Ceremony: From Ricky Martin to Falguni Pathak – Full List of Performers