\u2018There will be nerves\u2019
\nMen in Blue want to become first to win back-to-back T20 World Cups
\n Ahmedabad
\nIndia face New Zealand on Sunday in Ahmedabad, looking to become the first side to lift the T20 World Cup for a third time but under huge pressure with the weight of a nation on their shoulders.
\nStanding in the way of Suryakumar Yadav\u2019s side are a team who have already upset the odds with a thumping nine-wicket win over the previously unbeaten South Africa to reach the final.
\nNew Zealand believe, after Finn Allen\u2019s record 33-ball century in the semi-final in Kolkata, that they are capable of taking down the hosts to win their maiden T20 World Cup title.
\n\u201cWe\u2019ve got a lot of momentum going into the weekend,\u201d warned Allen.
\n\u201cI think if we play our best cricket we can beat anybody.\u201d
\nIndia will not only have to withstand the expectations of 100,000-plus cricket-obsessed fans in a packed Narendra Modi stadium and hundreds of millions more watching on TV, but also the weight of history.
\nThe world\u2019s top-ranked T20 team are attempting to become the first to win back-to-back T20 World Cups and the first to lift the trophy on home soil.
\n\u201cThere will definitely be pressure and nerves, especially playing in India and going for the title,\u201d said Suryakumar after a nerve-shredding seven-run win against England in a high-scoring semi-final.
\n\u201cBut the boys and the whole support staff are excited as well.\u201d
\nIndia have effectively played three knockout games to reach the final, after losing their opening Super Eights match to South Africa.
\nThey hammered Zimbabwe by 72 runs and chased down 196 to beat the West Indies in must-win games to reach Thursday\u00b4s semi-final against England.
\nAfter posting a mammoth 253-7 against Harry Brook\u2019s side, India needed a pivotal 18th over from death-bowling master Jasprit Bumrah to stave off an England batting assault.
\n\u2018Showed character\u2019
\nBumrah conceded just six runs from his final over to leave England with too much to do and, despite Jacob Bethell\u2019s 105, India held on to spark wild celebrations.
\nSuryakumar acknowledged he was lucky to have such a unique talent to call upon in the crucial moments.
\n\u201cWe all know what he\u2019s capable of and what he\u2019s done for India over the years. He did the same thing again today, raised his hand and showed character to pull the game away from them.
\n\u201cIt was a special bowling performance.\u201d
\nThe main concerns for India are the form of opening batsman Abhishek Sharma and leading spinner Varun Chakravarthy.
\nBoth are number one in the International Cricket Council T20 rankings but have been out of sorts as the tournament heads to its climax.
\nAbhishek had three consecutive ducks in the group phase and his only score of any note was a fifty against Zimbabwe.
\nChakravarthy was targeted mercilessly by England\u2019s batsmen at Mumbai\u2019s Wankhede stadium as they pummelled him for 64 runs from his four overs.
\nHe has taken just four wickets since the group phase.
\nMitchell Santner\u2019s New Zealand have blown hot and cold, having been beaten by South Africa and England earlier in the tournament.
\nBut all their players are hitting form at the right time and they have enough firepower to upset India.
\nThey crucially also have nothing to lose as they will go into the final as huge underdogs.
\nOpener Tim Seifert, who has three fifties in the tournament, has been consistently setting a platform for the likes of Allen and Glenn Phillips to launch.
\n\u201cI just looked to play almost a support role to Tim,\u201d said Allen after the semi-final, where Seifert hit 58 off 33 balls as the pair put on 117 for the first wicket in 9.1 overs.
\n\u201cHe\u2019s in incredible form, he\u2019s an incredible player and I think he\u2019s just showing the world what he can do.
\n\u201cI think that makes it easy for me to sit back and have the best seat in the house.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u2018There will be nerves\u2019 Men in Blue want to become first to win back-to-back T20 World Cups Ahmedabad India face New Zealand on Sunday in Ahmedabad, looking to become the first side to lift the T20 World Cup for a third time but under huge pressure with the weight of a nation on their shoulders. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":535287,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-535260","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"yoast_head":"\n