Australia has the legacy. India has the recency. And New Zealand has the consistency.

That is one way to sum up performances at ICC limited-overs World Cups in the last decade. Since 2015, Sunday (March 8, 2026) will mark the fifth time New Zealand’s men feature in the final of a global tournament — a testament to their sustained excellence across formats.

Yet captain Mitchell Santner knows that the team often dubbed the “nicest guys” in world cricket will have to break a billion hearts if they are to lift the Men’s T20 World Cup trophy on Sunday (March 8) night.

For Santner, the choice is straightforward. “I wouldn’t mind winning a trophy,” Santner said at a crowded media conference at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Saturday (March 7, 2026), on the eve of the final. “You look at this group and the groups that have been in the past and we are pretty consistent in our thoughts. We try not to get ruled by the situation or the opponents. We just go out there and do our thing as a unit.

“It’s been no different this time. Everyone knows we are probably not the favourites, but we don’t mind that. If we do the little things well and put in a strong team performance, it can put us in a good position to hopefully lift the trophy. But yeah, I wouldn’t mind breaking a few hearts to do that.”

India, meanwhile, have been nearly invincible in ICC tournaments of late. In their last 33 matches across global events, the hosts have lost only twice — the 2023 ODI World Cup final against Australia and the Super Eight clash against South Africa last month. Both defeats came at this very venue.

Australia captain Pat Cummins’ famous “silence the crowd” remark had echoed through the stadium in the 2023 ODI World Cup title-decider here. Santner, too, believes handling the atmosphere will again be key. “I guess that’s the goal — to silence the crowd,” Santner said.

“There are a lot of variables in T20 cricket. It’s fickle at times. We’ve seen throughout this World Cup that teams are very evenly matched. It often comes down to a few small moments that change the outcome.”

Santner also pointed to the pressure on the hosts. “There is obviously a lot of pressure on India to win this World Cup at home. If we don’t win, it would be pretty cool to win a home World Cup. That comes with added pressure, so we can go out there and try to put that pressure on them and see what happens.”

For New Zealand, the final also carries recent context. The two sides met in a five-match T20I series in India just before the tournament — a contest India dominated 4-1. Santner believes the lessons from that series have helped the Black Caps during the World Cup.

“In terms of planning and execution, it was a great series. We were challenged a lot of times,” Santner said. “You build on what works and what doesn’t and take that information forward.

“We obviously played on five pretty good surfaces around India. I’m not sure what it’s going to play like here, but I assure you it’s going to be pretty good. Guys will take good conversations from that series into this game. But a World Cup final is a little bit different to a bilateral series.”

In its earlier modest avatar as the Motera, the current gigantic Narendra Modi Stadium, witnessed history. In this venue, Sunil Gavaskar became the first man to reach 10,000 Test runs with a late cut off Pakistani spinner Ijaz Faqih in 1987. And in 1994, Kapil Dev emerged as the highest wicket-taker in Tests, scalping Sri Lankan Hashan Tillakaratne as his 432nd victim.

These achievements, though, were at an individual level, while India searched for a collective team performance that would lend an aura to this ground. The Men in Blue lost the 2023 World Cup final to Australia in Ahmedabad on a November night that broke countless hearts.

Cut to the present, Suryakumar Yadav’s men have a chance to script history as Sunday’s (March 8, 2026) ICC T20 World Cup final against New Zealand beckons. Stepping in as defending champion, India seeks an encore.

Through the campaign, despite a solitary loss against South Africa, India found a way to dominate. Its tail-wind now is being propelled by opener Sanju Samson, spearhead Jasprit Bumrah and all-rounder Hardik Pandya.

Opener Samson has lent assurance and aggression. Nearly everyone has chipped in, and some have excelled in their secondary roles too. Seamer Shivam Dube batted well, and spinner Axar Patel displayed incredible fielding skills.

Still, there are concerns. Abhishek Sharma has a lone fifty, and Varun Chakaravarthy’s mystique as a spinner has been dented. Both stepped into this championship as ICC’s number one batter and bowler respectively in T20Is. Their mixed yield is another reflection of how sport can be a hard place.

Facing-off from the rival corner is New Zealand. Finn Allen’s 33-ball unbeaten 100 pulverised South Africa in the semifinal at Eden Gardens. His fellow batter Tim Seifert has been prolific while among bowlers, Rachin Ravindra the spinner, has dominated with 11 wickets and seamer Matt Henry has bowled tight.

The Black Caps have often ambushed India at cricket’s biggest stages. Be it the 2019 World Cup semifinal at Manchester, or the 2021 ICC World Test Championship final at Southampton, New Zealand dashed Indian hopes.

In the 1980s and 1990s, the West Indies was the second-favourite side of most fans, and now that tag sits easily upon New Zealand, as the likes of Kane Williamson enhanced the endearment-factor.

Mitchell Santner’s troops will be conscious of a drought when it comes to ICC titles. A lone Test Championship title, and multiple runner-up finishes define New Zealand’s tilt at glory so far.

In ODIs, back in 2000, New Zealand won the ICC KnockOut Trophy at India’s expense in Nairobi with Chris Cairns smashing an unbeaten 102. The one link from those days is Ajit Agarkar, who played that game, and is now the chairman of Indian selectors.

New Zealand would want to replicate its giant-killing act. However, India wants to own a slice of history in a city that seeks a sporting high as a prelude to hosting the 2030 Commonwealth Games besides dreaming about a probable Olympic debut in 2036.