West Indies’ gutsy victory against Zimbabwe further complicated India’s woes in their ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 campaign, pushing them into a corner. West Indies crushed Zimbabwe by 107 runs in their Super 8 match on Monday, February 23 at the Wankhede Stadium after posting the second highest total in T20 World Cup history.
Set a daunting target of 255, Zimbabwe were bowled out for 147 in 17.4 overs. The emphatic victory left India in a precarious position as they now need convincing wins in their remaining two matches after suffering a 76-run defeat to South Africa in their Super 8 opener.
Zimbabwe began with intent in chasing what looked an unlikely chase as Tadiwanashe Marumani (14 off 8) got off to a brisk start. However, he was caught at deep point off Matthew Forde in the second over. Zimbabwe’s woes deepened when Akeal Hosein (3/28) produced a dash of spin magic to dismiss Brian Bennett (5 off 5) for the first time in the tournament. Three balls later, Ryan Burl (0 off 3) was caught at deep square leg, causing Zimbabwe serious trouble.
Gudakesh Motie’s Magic of Dreams
In the blink of an eye, Zimbabwe collapsed from 20 for no loss to 20 for 3 within five deliveries. When Hosein got a sharp turn from the surface, Gudakesh Motie (4/28) joined the attack and bowled a spell to remember, going through the Zimbabwean batting order. First, he outwitted Dion Myers (28 off 15), who was flattened by sharp turn and lost his stumps.
World Cup T20: ZIM vs WI Highlights
Motie consistently hit the ideal length on the pitch and continued to trouble the batsmen, swinging the ball sharply away from the right-handers and hitting the outside edge repeatedly. He later smashed Sikandar Raza’s stumps (27 off 20) and compounded Tashinga Musekiwa’s misery by dismissing him for a golden duck. Tony Munyonga became his fourth victim, caught at deep mid-wicket.
Zimbabwe were clearly struggling, playing their first match of the tournament in India, unable to acclimatise to the conditions in Mumbai. Brad Evans (43 off 21) briefly delayed the inevitable with a flurry of late boundaries but eventually fell to Matthew Forde (2/27 in 3.4 overs) in the 18th over as West Indies sealed a commanding victory.
Earlier, West Indies tested with the new ball Richard Ngarava (2/42) and Blessing Muzarabani (2/47) after captain Sikandar Raza won the toss and elected to field. Ngarava dismissed Brandon King (9 off 12) while Brad Evans accounted for Shai Hope (14 off 12) as West Indies ended the powerplay at 55 for 2 in six overs.
Hetmyer makes Zimbabwe pay for catches
Shimron Hetmyer arrived in the box during the power play and immediately signaled his intent and got off the mark. The left-hander was given a ninth reprieve by Musekiwa and ensured Zimbabwe paid dearly for a missed opportunity. Hetmyer scored the fastest half-century by a West Indies batsman in T20 World Cup history, reaching the milestone in just 19 deliveries.
He found a capable partner in Rovman Powell, who endured a slow start when he managed only 15 runs from the first 18 balls. However, Powell shifted gears from the 12th over and took on Brad Evans and Dion Myers to bring up his half-century in just 30 balls. Hetmyer and Powell combined to put on a blistering 122-run partnership from just 52 deliveries for the third wicket to take West Indies past the 170-run mark for the 15th over.
The West Indies complicate India’s troubles
Hetmyer (85 off 34) was eventually dismissed after being dropped twice by Musekiwa, taking Graeme Cremer to deep mid-wicket. With the departure of Hetmyer and Powell (59 off 35), Sherfane Rutherford (31* off 13), Romario Shepherd (21 off 10) and Jason Holder (13 off 4) provided a perfect finish to guide West Indies to the second highest total in T20 World Cup history (254/6).
Meanwhile, the commanding win left India under immense pressure in Group 1 following their 76-run defeat by South Africa in their first Super 8 match. The heavy loss has hurt their net run rate, which now stands at -3.80. Meanwhile, West Indies climbed to the top of the group with an impressive net rate of +5.350. On the other hand, South Africa are second with a net run rate of +3.80. Both teams appear to be favorites to advance from the group to the semi-finals.
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Issued by:
Rishabh Beniwal
Published on:
February 23, 2026
