AHMEDABAD, March 7 : New Zealand would not mind being the underdogs and breaking hearts in Sunday’s Twenty20 World Cup final against hosts India, captain Mitchell Santner said ahead of the contest in front of a partisan Ahmedabad crowd.
New Zealand reached the final after sweeping past South Africa in a ruthless nine-wicket win and are chasing their first global T20 crown after falling short in previous campaigns.
“We are pretty consistent because we try not get overawed by the situation or opponents. We just go out there and do our thing,” Santner told reporters on Saturday.
“It’s going to be an opposite challenge where everyone knows we’re probably not the favourites. But we don’t mind. We know we can do little things well and put in a strong team performance.
“It would put us in a pretty good position to hopefully lift the trophy. I wouldn’t mind breaking a few hearts to lift the trophy.”
Santner said the pressure would lean heavily on the hosts, who are bidding to defend the title in front of more than 100,000 spectators expected at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
He did not shy away from the prospect of silencing a packed house, drawing an echo of Pat Cummins-led Australia’s triumph at the same venue in the 2023 one-day World Cup final.
“The goal is to silence the crowd. There are a lot of variables in T20 cricket and it is fickle at times,” the 34-year-old said.
“If we go out about our business the same way we can upset another big team. There’s obviously a lot of pressure on in there (on India) to win this World Cup at home.”
India are coming off the back of a stunning seven-run win over England in the semi-final and Santner emphasised the need for early breakthroughs to blunt their top order.
“The only way to slow any team down is wickets at the top and then try to squeeze a few overs in the middle… if you’re not taking wickets, you have to find a way to stop boundaries,” he said.
He also praised the depth of New Zealand’s squad, highlighting Cole McConchie’s smooth transition after replacing the injured Michael Bracewell.
McConchie has scored 45 runs and taken two wickets in four matches.
“Cole coming straight in, was obviously a challenge. I think when you have the buy-in of the group, it’s not just the 11 out there, it’s the 15 in the squad… We’re all in this journey together,” Santner said.
Despite the size of the occasion, Santner urged his side to treat it like any other day at the office.
“It’s easy to say it’s just another game — everyone knows it’s probably not — but the way you go about it has to be the same,” he added.
