India vs New Zealand: T20 World Cup final – ‘No pressure, no fun’ for hosts

India vs New Zealand: T20 World Cup final – ‘No pressure, no fun’ for hostsIndia have a treble of firsts before them in T20 World Cup final vs New Zealand, and the expectations of 1.4 billion fans behind them.Published On 7 Mar 2026The best way to deal with pressure is to embrace it, India captain ⁠Suryakumar Yadav reminded ⁠his teammates ahead of Sunday’s final of the Twenty20 World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium.India are bidding to become the first team to ⁠retain the T20 World Cup title, to win it on home soil and to win the trophy for a record third time.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4‘Sports cold war’: How the Middle East conflict could disrupt the World Cuplist 2 of 4FIFA, AFC urged to protect Iran women footballers after ‘traitors’ threatlist 3 of 4Messi censured for meeting and applauding Trump amid US attacks on Iranlist 4 of 4Missile strikes, no flights: Middle East conflict disrupts global sportend of listTo achieve all that, they will have to deal with not just a strong New Zealand XI but also the weight of expectation ⁠from a cricket-mad nation of 1.4 billion people.Leading the team in the final of a home World Cup was a “special feeling”, and Suryakumar said they were looking forward to the challenge.“There are nerves, butterflies in the stomach, but as I always say – if there’s ‌no pressure, there’s no fun,” Suryakumar told reporters on Saturday.“I’m very excited. All the boys and support staff, and I’m sure all of India is excited [for the game].”More than 100,000 predominantly home fans are expected to fill the world’s largest cricket stadium, where Australia famously beat India in the final of the 50-overs World Cup three years ago.Expectations are mounting again as India also try to become the ⁠first host to win a T20 World Cup.Suryakumar said they try ⁠not to talk about cricket, and the presence of “characters” like Arshdeep Singh and Axar Patel keeps the dressing room atmosphere light.“It’s very important to have such characters around, because when the situation is tight, you ⁠need someone to joke around in the bus and in the dressing room, to calm the dressing room,” said Suryakumar.