India once again maintained their champions tag in the shortest format with yet another World Cup final entry – four consecutive finals in four years – after the Men in Blue edged England by seven runs at a packed Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026 on Thursday.
The Suryakumar Yadav-led side will face New Zealand in the summit clash on March 8 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad after the Kiwis registered an one-side victory over last year’s runners-up South Africa in the first semifinal at the iconic Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
More than the final, its another India vs New Zealand showdown in an ICC knockout final – their second in as many years. In doing so, India and New Zealand also scripted a unique milestone of their own by becoming the first teams to meet in ICC finals across all three formats – Tests, ODIs and T20Is.
ICC Knockout Trophy final – 2000 in Nairobi
The first time India met New Zealand in an ICC event final was in 2000. It was then named as ICC Knockout Trophy before being rebranded as ICC Champions Trophy. While Sourav Ganguly was the Indian captain, the Kiwis were led by Stephen Fleming at that time.
Sent into bat first, India rode on a majestic 117 from Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar’s 69 to post a formidable 264/6 in 50 overs. In reply, New Zealand were tottering at 132/5 before Chris Cairns took the match away from India’s grasp with an unbeaten 102. Cairns was ably supported by Chris Harris (46) as New Zealand romped home with two balls to spare.
2021 wtc final in southampton
The second time both these teams met in an ICC event final was 21 years later in the summit clash of the World Test Championship (WTC) in Southampton. Virat Kohli and Kane Williamson were the rival skippers with New Zealand opting to bowl first after winning the toss.
India were dismissed for 217 in the first innings, thanks to a 5/31 from Kyle Jamiseon. New Zealand replied with 249 as Mohammed Shami (4/76) and Ishan Sharma (3/48) starring with the ball for India. The Kohli-led side once again faltered to New Zealand pace attack in the second innings as Tim Southee (4/48) and Trent Boult (3/39) restricted the opposition to 170.
With 139 runs to win, Kane Williamson (52 not out) and Ross Taylor (47 not out) steered the Blackcaps to a memorable victory in the inaugural WTC final.
ICC Champions Trophy 2025 in Dubai
Four years later, India and New Zealand once again came face-to-face in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 final in Dubai. Having won the T20 World Cup so me eight months back in Barbados, India were in great form in white-ball cricket and maintained dominance through the 2025 Champions Trophy.
Batting first, New Zealand put 251/7, thanks to half-centuries from Daryl Mitchell (63) and Michael Bracewell (53). Although India lost three wickets within 17 runs while chasing, it was Rohit Sharma who laid the platform for the Men in Blue’s win with a fluent 76. Shreyas Iyer contributed with 48 beforefire KL Rahul finished the job with an unbeaten 34. Axar Patel scored 29 too as India lifted the ICC Champions Trophy for a record third time.
