Kolkata, February 28 – The iconic Eden Gardens is set to host a major match on Sunday as the defending champions, India, will face the West Indies in their last match of the T20 World Cup 2026 Super 8s. This match will essentially be a quarterfinal, determining the fate of both teams.
Both India and the West Indies have won one and lost one match in Group 1 of the Super 8, with both teams having two points.
The path to the semi-final is straightforward for both teams: the winner of the match will advance to the next round, along with South Africa, which has already secured its spot from Group A.
India secured a dominant 72-run victory against Zimbabwe in their second Super 8 match, played at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Thursday. They had previously lost to South Africa, and have two points from two matches.
Despite the convincing win against Zimbabwe, the performance of their key bowler, Varun Chakravarthy, will be under scrutiny when they face the two-time champions, the West Indies, in a crucial match. Varun conceded 35 runs against the Sikandar Raza-led team and only took one wicket. Against the Proteas, Varun leaked 47 runs and took only one wicket. India will hope that their mystery spinner returns to his best form when he plays for his IPL team, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), at home.
For the hosts, the return of opener Abhishek Sharma, who scored a fifty against Zimbabwe after scoring three ducks in the previous four matches he played in this World Cup, is a positive sign.
India has played only one T20 World Cup match at Eden Gardens. In the 2016 T20 World Cup, India faced Pakistan at this ground, winning by six wickets. India also won all three matches against the West Indies at Eden Gardens in T20Is in 2022.
The West Indies are entering this crucial match after suffering a nine-wicket defeat against the T20 World Cup 2024 runners-up, South Africa, in their second Super 8s match, played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday. Shai Hope's team secured a big win in their first Super 8s match against Zimbabwe. The Caribbean side also has two points from two matches.
The Windies have good memories of this iconic ground. Ten years ago, they defeated England in the 2016 T20 World Cup final here to secure their most impressive ICC title. The Windies have played three T20 World Cup matches at this venue and have never lost a match. Shai Hope's team will look to continue this streak against the home team.
Squads:
India: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Ishan Kishan (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Sanju Samson (wk), Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel.
West Indies: Brandon King, Shai Hope (wk/c), Shimron Hetmyer, Roston Chase, Sherfane Rutherford, Rovman Powell, Jason Holder, Romario Shepherd, Akeal Hosein, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Joseph, Johnson Charles, Matthew Forde, Jayden Seales, Quentin Sampson
