However, before the 2026 T20 World Cup final, there was fear among Indian fans about a strange “curse of Ahmedabad” linked to the Narendra Modi Stadium. This conversation became louder after the Men in Blue side were heartbroken by the 2023 ODI World Cup defeat against Australia, which ended their 10-match winning streak.
The ‘Ahmedabad Curse’ speech before India’s glory at the 2026 T20 World Cup
That evening turned painful for the entire country, with many on social media starting to call the Narendra Modi Stadium ‘panoti’, and those conversations dominated social media as the Men in Blue were about to face New Zealand in the final of the 2026 T20 World Cup in Ahmedabad.
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But this time, the Men in Blue dominated the title fight from start to finish, and Harbhajan Singh believes fans are blaming the wrong things. The former World Cup winner has stressed that the matches are won by good cricket, and not by the stadium where the match takes place, saying the result depends on the performance on the day.
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Harbhajan Singh dismisses the unfortunate stadium theory
Harbhajan Singh was quoted by India Today as saying, “If two good teams play each other, obviously one will lose. When India played Australia (in 2023), Australia was the better team on that particular day. In this match we have seen that if you put your right foot forward from ball one, you get the results.”
“Whatever people used to think that this ground is a ‘panauti’ (unfortunate) or whatever I have heard on social media, that is now done and dusted. It is the mentality of the people who have never played cricket.”
The former off-spinner said fans should stop creating myths about grounds. Harbhajan said that India did not even have the best record at the famous Eden Gardens but later the team started winning at this venue too. The cricket pandit has further emphasized that the venue has nothing to do with the cricketers or the outcome of the match.
Ravichandran Ashwin slams the ‘Unlucky Stadium’ theory
Meanwhile, former off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin also urged fans not to make any cricket ground a ‘taboo’ place. He emphasized that teams can lose one match at a venue and win the next. That is the normal nature of the sport.
Ashwin gave the perfect example of how the 2026 T20 World Cup final was won by the Indian team at the same Ahmedabad stadium where they lost the 2023 ODI World Cup to Australia.
Talking about “Ash ki Baat”, Ravichandran Ashwin said, “You can lose a match at a venue and win the next. What’s in that? We have won many matches in that stadium. Don’t make a stadium such a taboo. I don’t think it should play a role. I am sure that monkey on the back will be there again after a while. But now I don’t think the team will think in that direction.”
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