Kathmandu: India has clinched the title of the ICC T20 World Cup Cricket tournament by defeating New Zealand.
According to National News Agency Nepal, in the final match held at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India beat New Zealand by 96 runs. This victory marks India’s second consecutive win in the World Cup, having previously claimed the ICC T20 World Cup title in 2024. India also won the same title in 2007.
New Zealand, tasked with chasing a formidable target of 256 runs set by India, was restricted to 159 runs, losing all wickets in 19 overs. Tim Seifert was the top scorer for New Zealand, amassing 52 runs off 26 balls, which included two fours and five sixes. Mitchell Santner contributed 43 runs from 35 balls, while Daryl Mitchell added 17 runs off 11 balls.
Indian bowlers delivered a strong performance, with Jasprit Bumrah taking 4 wickets for just 15 runs in his 4 overs. Axar Patel claimed 3 wickets, and Hardik Pandya, Varun Chakravarthy, and Abhishek Sharma each took a wicket.
Electing to bat
first after losing the toss, India posted a total of 255 runs for the loss of 5 wickets in the allotted 20 overs. Sanju Samson stood out with the bat, scoring 89 runs off 46 balls, including 5 fours and 8 sixes. Abhishek Sharma contributed 52 runs off 21 balls, and Ishan Kishan made 54 runs off 25 balls. Hardik Pandya added 18 runs from 13 balls.
Captain Suryakumar Yadav was dismissed for 9 runs. Towards the end of the innings, Shivam Dube scored 26 runs off 8 balls, while Tilak Varma remained unbeaten on 8. For New Zealand, James Neesham took 3 wickets, while Matt Henry and Rachin Ravindra claimed 1 wicket each.