T20 World Cup 2026 Final: There is growing panic among Indian fans as the final against New Zealand is scheduled to take place on Sunday. The ‘Men in Blue’ have never won a final of the World Cup on Sunday.
India lost the 2023 ODI World Cup on Sunday at Narendra Modi Stadium. Image Credit: X/@BCCI
The Indian team will be looking to not only break the supposed curse of the Narendra Modi Stadium but also to break their Sunday curse. The Indian fans have been left in panic as the T20 World Cup final between India and New Zealand is set to take place on a Sunday.
The Men in Blue have never won a final of any World Cup on a Sunday. Even with arguably their strongest sides in the 2003 World Cup and 2023 World Cup, they could not overcome the curse of a final on Sunday.
India has never won a World Cup final on a Sunday. In 2003, India lost the final of the World Cup for the first time. Sourav Ganguly’s side faced off a world-beating Australian team led by Ricky Ponting. The Australian skipper was named the player of the match for his batting performance in the first innings. Ponting scored 140 runs in 121 balls while remaining unbeaten and set India a target of 360 runs. The Men in Blue were rolled out for 234 runs with Virender Sehwag scoring 82 runs.
Their second loss in the World Cup final came in the 2014 T20 World Cup. Virat Kohli top-scored for the team in the first innings, scoring 77 runs in 58 balls, setting Sri Lanka a target of 131 runs. In response, Sri Lanka chased down the target quite easily with six wickets remaining and 13 balls to spare.
India then lost their third ICC World Cup final against Australia in the 2023 World Cup. Virat Kohli and KL Rahul scored fifties while Rohit Sharma gave a quick start at the top of the order. However, none of the batters could go on to play a big knock, which meant that they could end with a total of only 240 runs. Australia chased down the total of 241 in 43 overs at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad thanks to a century from Travis Head.
India has won four World Cups, two each in the white-ball formats. Their first World Cup win came on June 25, 1983, when Kapil Dev’s team defended 183 against the West Indies on a Saturday. Mohinder Amarnath was named the player of the match for his all-round performance.
Inda had to wait for 24 years to win their next World Cup. The win came in the inaugural T20 World Cup on September 24, 2007, which was a Monday. The current Indian head coach, Gautam Gambhir, scored 75 runs as India set Pakistan a target of 158. Irfan Pathan picked up three wickets in the second innings to be named the player of the match as the MS Doni-led side won the match by five runs.
In 2011, India won its second ODI World Cup on the 2nd of April, a Saturday. Gambhir and Dhoni made 90s in the second innings after being set a target of 275 runs. India won the clash by six wickets with 10 balls remaining.
In 2024, India won the World Cup after 13 years on the 29th of June in Barbados on a Saturday. Once again, it was Kohli who was the star performer with the bat for the Indian team in the first innings. The bowling attack led by Jasprit Bumrah defended 176 runs to win the clash by seven runs. Kohli was named the player of the match while Bumrah was named the player of the series.
