Mitchell Santner praises India after New Zealand lose T20 World Cup final

Ahmedabad: New Zealand suffered a crushing 96-run defeat against India in the 2026 T20 World Cup title match. With this, the Kiwis lost their chance to win the T20 World Cup for the first time. Despite this defeat, New Zealand captain Mitchell Santner expressed pride in his team. In the final match played at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday, India, batting first, scored 255 runs for the loss of 5 wickets. In response, the Kiwis were bowled out for just 159 runs in 19 overs.

Proud of my team - Mitchell Santner

After missing out on the title, Kiwi captain Mitchell Santner said, "I'm proud of my players for getting this far. We faced many challenges throughout the tournament, but we overcame them at every stage and performed well. Although tonight we lost to a very good team in front of a great crowd, I'm still proud of the team."

Santner also praised Suryakumar Yadav

Regarding the support the New Zealand team receives in India, Santner said, "We usually get great crowds wherever we play. Today, the stadium was a sea of ​​blue. Obviously, we weren't the home favorites, but India deserves credit for winning the title on home soil. Winning here always comes with a lot of pressure. I think Suryakumar Yadav and his team should be very proud of their performance."

I'm proud of the players.

When asked what worked best for his team during the tournament, Santner said, "I think different players took responsibility at different times. We faced challenges at every stage, but it was good to overcome them. We performed very well in the Super 8s and semi-finals. Although we were defeated by a better team today, the players should still be proud of their performance."