Stat Check: India’s ICC Finals Record Against New Zealand Across Formats

India will take on New Zealand in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, March 8, 2026. India, co-hosts of the tournament and the reigning champions, will be favourites to defend their title at home against the Black Caps.

New Zealand shocked the cricketing world by defeating an unbeaten South African side by nine wickets in the semi-finals. The Kiwis had managed to progress to that stage only due to their superior net run rate to Pakistan’s, but their all-round performance against SA has led to a final meeting against the Men in Blue.

Interestingly, this is only the fourth time that India and New Zealand – two cricketing powerhouses – will meet in the final of an ICC event, and the first time in the T20 format. Although it’s Suryakumar Yadav and co who have the ‘favourites’ tag ahead of Sunday’s game, it’s New Zealand who have had better fortunes facing India in ICC finals.

Let’s take a look at India’s record in ICC finals against New Zealand in their three previous such meetings:

ICC Champions Trophy Final, 2000: NZ Win By 4 Wickets

India faced New Zealand in the final of a global tournament for the first time on October 15, 2000, in the ICC Champions Trophy (then called the ICC KnockOut Trophy). NZ captain Stephen Fleming won the toss in Nairobi and opted to field first. Captain Sourav Ganguly led India’s innings with a 117-run knock, assisted by Sachin Tendulkar’s 69. The pair pushed India to a good total of 264/6.

New Zealand’s chase stuttered at the beginning, standing at 132/5. However, an unbeaten century by Chris Cairns and 46 from Chris Harris led the Kiwis to chase down the target with two balls to spare.

World Test Championship Final, 2021: NZ Win By 8 Wickets

India next met New Zealand the final of the inaugural World Test Championship 2019-21, which was played in Southampton. After winning the toss, New Zealand opted to field. Although Rohit Sharma (34) and Virat Kohli (44) had decent contributions, India were restricted to 217 in the first innings. Kane Williamson (49) took NZ’s score to 249, despite Mohammad Shami’s four-wicket spell.

India’s second innings was disastrous as they were all out for 170, with Rishabh Pant top-scoring with 41. A superb unbeaten partnership by Williamson (2) and Ross Taylor (47) took NZ over the line with ease.

ICC Champions Trophy Final, 2025: IND Win By 4 Wickets

India faced New Zealand in another Champions Trophy final, 25 years after the Black Caps’ title win. The match took place in Dubai, with NZ opting to bat first after winning the toss. Rachin Ravindra gave the Black Caps a good start with 37 off 29 balls, while Daryl Mitchell (63) and Michael Bracewell (53 not out) led them to 251/7.

India, unbeaten throughout the tournament, started the chase with a bang. Captain Rohit Sharma played a superb knock – 76 off 83 – while Shubman Gill added 31. Shreyas Iyer (48) and KL Rahul (34 not out) carried India over the line with one over to spare.