The Men in Blue finally returned to their commanding best during their second match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 Super 8 against Zimbabwe at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Thursday, February 26. India flexed their batting muscles in emphatic fashion, posting 256/4 in their 20 overs – the second highest total in T20 World Cup history.
It marked a remarkable turnaround from their previous outing, when they were bowled out for 111 against South Africa and fell by 76 runs. This time, the Indian batting line-up – from the openers to the No. 6 – batted for more than 150, with each scoring more than 20 runs, a first in T20 World Cup history.
IND vs ZIM T20 WORLD CUP 2026: MAIN | SCORECARD
Abhishek Sharma led the charge at the topbringing up his maiden half-century of the tournament with a smooth 55 off 30 deliveries. He was ably supported by Sanju Samson (24 off 15), Ishan Kishan (38 off 24), Hardik Pandya (50* off 23) and Tilak Varma (44* off 16), all contributing significantly to the impressive total.
Varma and Pandya were involved in a breathtaking partnership of 84 runs for the fifth wicket off just 31 balls as India easily crossed the 250 mark. It was undoubtedly their most complete batting display of the tournament so far, especially after repeated collapses in earlier matches.
Coming into the tournament, India’s T20I success has been built on their formidable batting, having crossed the 200-run mark 15 times since the previous T20 World Cup. The men in blue rediscovered that aggressive edge against Zimbabwe, taking calculated risks rather than resorting to reckless swagger.
A clip to boost morale
The performance was in stark contrast to their previous game and captain Suryakumar Yadav revealed how the team regrouped after the crushing defeat with a special video analyst presentation. He explained that the analyst compiled customized slides for both the batsmen and the pitchers, highlighting their performances over the past year.
“We didn’t think too much about what we did in the league stage or what we did in the last game in Ahmedabad. But we thoroughly had a picture that our video analyst did for all the batsmen and bowlers of what we did for the year. We saw that picture, we took a lot of positivity from it. When we came here, I think the contributions from all 7 batsmen, I think it was up top,” he said. post-match presentation.
Tilak Varma also shed light on the impact of the session, revealing how it provided a much-needed morale boost ahead of a must-win clash.
“Earlier, we were shown what we have been doing for the last year. Before we went into the match, we had a 15-minute team video showing everything we had worked on in the last year. Watching that video gave us all a really good boost,” Varma said in an interview with Star Sports.
How can India qualify for the semi-finals?
Meanwhile, despite the emphatic victory, India’s journey at the Super 8 stage is far from over. Their qualification hopes now hinge on their last Super 8 match against the West Indies in Kolkata, a contest that effectively serves as the quarter-final.
A win in this encounter will secure India a place in the semi-finals, while any slip-up will bring their campaign at home to an abrupt end. With momentum finally on their side, the Men in Blue will be keen to carry this renewed confidence into the decisive clash.
Having rediscovered their batting firepower and collective conviction, India now face the challenge of emulating another all-round performance against the West Indies to secure a place in the semi-finals.
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Issued by:
Rishabh Beniwal
Published on:
27 Feb 2026 10:53 IST
