The T20 World Cup final between India and New Zealand is less than 24 hours away and the intrigue around the pitch is increasing with every minute. With India not doing well at the venue in the World Cup 2023 final against Australia and in the Super 8 clash of this tournament against South Africa, the fans are eager to get every possible information around the pitch on offer at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. On that note, let us have a look what does Ahmedabad pitch has had to offer in this tournament so far and what we have in store for the final:
Ahmedabad – T20 World Cup Numbers Game
Matches Played – 6
Matches won batting first – 3
Matches won bowling first – 2 (One game ended in a tie)
Average 1st innings – 189
Highest total – 213/4 by SA vs Canada
Notably, four of these matches started at 7 PM and the match is set to be played on the pitch where South Africa smashed 213 runs against Canada on February 9. It is a mixed soil surface which is full of runs and will also assist the seamers a bit. The surface is also fresh as the game was played exactly four weeks ago on it. This means we could be up for another high-scoring affair in the final but mind you, the boundaries at the Narendra Modi Stadium are big, unlike the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, where the ball travelled a lot.
Ahmedabad Pitch Report in T20Is
Matches Played – 17
Matches won batting first – 11
Matches won bowling first – 6
Average 1st innings – 174
Highest total – 234/4 by India vs New Zealand (On Feb 1 in 2023)
The world’s largest stadium in the world has three different types of pitches – red soil, black soil and mixed soil. Over the course of last 17 T20I played here, all three kinds of pitches have been used and interestingly, the finalists locked horns at this venue around three years ago when India pummelled 234 runs. Shubman Gill smashed a sensational century then and in response, New Zealand were skittled only for 66 runs to lose by a whopping margin of 168 runs.
But anything of that sorts is unlikely to happen on Sunday as both teams are evenly matched in terms of powerhitting. The team that will get hold of the conditions better will come out on top.
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