Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], March 9 (ANI): India star all-rounder Hardik Pandya reflected on his journey from facing difficulties in life to lifting back-to-back T20 World Cup trophies.

Pandya said his T20 World Cup 2026 win in Ahmedabad is a validation of a promise he made to himself to win and lift trophies for India. He sought redemption in the 2024 World Cup, making a dominating comeback and winning after 17 years.

'When we won the T20 World Cup in 2024, I was facing a lot of difficulties personally. Many things had happened before that tournament, and things were not going my way. Before the 2024 World Cup started, I had made up my mind that I was going for redemption. I wanted to make a dominating comeback. I did that and helped my team win the trophy after 17 years. Coming to this T20 World Cup victory in Ahmedabad, this is something I have always lived for. I play cricket to do well for my country and win trophies. I want to win all the trophies for India,' Hardik Pandya said on JioStar.

'After the win in Barbados, I promised myself that whichever tournament I play, I will play to win, and I will lift the trophy. This win against New Zealand in Ahmedabad is a validation that the promise I made to myself has become a reality. And this is just the start,' he added.

India defeated the Mitchell Santner-led New Zealand by a huge 96-run margin to defend their T20 World Cup title. With the win, India became the first team to win the T20 World Cup at home, the first team to win it back-to-back after securing the 2024 edition, and the first team to win it three times (2007, 2024, 2026).

Pandya had a brilliant run in the T20 WC 2026, with 217 runs under his belt in nine innings at an average of 27.12 and a strike rate of 160.74, including two fifties. The 32-year-old star all-rounder also shone with the ball for India as he scalped nine wickets in 9 fixtures with best figures of 2/16.

Coming to the match, NZ put India to bat first after winning the toss, Samson (89 in 46 balls, with five fours and eight sixes), Abhishek Sharma (52 in 21 balls, with six fours and three sixes) and Ishan Kishan (54 in 25 balls, with four boundaries and four sixes) and Shivam Dube (26* in 8 balls, with three fours and two sixes) took India to 255/5.

Later on, despite a fifty from Tim Seifert (52 in 26 balls, with two fours and five sixes), the Kiwis had to bow down to the sheer greatness of Axar (3/27) and Bumrah (4/15) as Men in Blue secure their third T20WC title in style, becoming the first team to defend the title, and also the first host nation to win the trophy. (ANI)