Ahmedabad, February 14 – Aiden Markram of South Africa hit an unbeaten half-century, while Marco Jansen took 4 wickets for 40, leading South Africa to a 7-wicket victory against New Zealand in match 24 of the 2026 ICC Men's T20 World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Saturday.
Jansen bowled brilliantly, taking his career-best figures, and South Africa won by 3 wickets in the Power-play. He then dismissed Mark Chapman (48) for a 4-wicket haul, restricting New Zealand to 175/7 in 20 overs. The New Zealand team batted first on a pitch that favored fast bowlers.
Markram then scored an unbeaten 86 off 44 balls, hitting 8 fours and 4 sixes, along with crucial partnerships with Quinton de Kock (20), Ryan Rickelton (21), and David Miller (24 not out), helping South Africa reach 178/7 in 17.1 overs.
This is South Africa's third win in three matches, and they are leading Group D with 6 points. New Zealand is second with 4 points from 2 wins, while the UAE is third with 1 point from 2 games. Afghanistan and Canada have lost both their matches and are yet to open their account.
This win also boosted South Africa's Net Run Rate, while New Zealand also experienced a drop in this area.
Chasing 176, Markram started aggressively, scoring back-to-back boundaries off Matt Henry in the first over, followed by a six and a four in the second over, bowled by Lockie Ferguson.
Markram then scored 6 x 4 and 4 x 6 in the third over, bowled by Jacob Duffy, further accelerating South Africa's innings, which reached 83/1, their highest Power-play score in a men's T20 World Cup.
He lost his partner Quinton de Kock (20) after they had added 62 runs for the opening partnership and 40 runs for the second wicket with Rickelton (21 off 14). But Markram continued his aggressive batting, capitalizing on the slightly easier conditions.
Markram, who was dropped by Ferguson, reached his fifty off 19 balls (6 x 4, 4 x 6), and though he slowed down slightly after losing Dewald Brevis (21 off 17), South Africa remained in control. David Miller (24 off 17) sealed the victory with a six in the first ball of the 18th over. Markram finished with 86.
Earlier, Jansen had dismissed the New Zealand top order, taking two wickets in three balls. The Black Caps were struggling at 58/3 at the end of the Power-play. Jansen got Tim Seifert to edge one behind to Quinton de Kock for 13, reducing the score to 33/1. He then dismissed Rachin Ravindra (13 off 8) and David Miller (13 off 9) with sharp catches. The score was 53/3 after six balls. Finn Allen, who had scored 31 off 17 balls (4 x 4, 2 x 6), was caught by Markram.
Keshav Maharaj then got Glenn Phillips to edge one onto his stumps, leaving New Zealand at 64/4 in the seventh over.
However, Mark Chapman and Daryll Mitchell then put on a 74-run partnership for the fifth wicket, scoring at a fast pace. Chapman was looking good for a half-century, but he was dismissed by Jansen for 48 off 26 balls, hitting six fours and two sixes.
Mitchell fell for 32 off 24 balls (2 x 4, 1 x 6) before being caught by Tristan Stubbs. New Zealand then lost another wicket when Mitchell Santner was out for 4 in the 17th over, leaving them at 145/7.
James Neesham then hit an unbeaten 23 off 5 balls, including two boundaries in the final over, adding 30 runs for the unfinished eighth-wicket partnership with Matt Henry (9 not out off 8), helping New Zealand reach a defendable total of 175/7 in 20 overs.
Brief scores:
New Zealand 175/7 in 20 overs (Mark Chapman 48, Daryl Mitchell 32, Finn Allen 31, James Neesham 23 not out; Marco Jansen 4-40) lost to South Africa 178/3 in 17.1 overs (Aiden Markram 86 not out, David Miller 24 not out; James Neesham 1-15, Lockie Ferguson 1-33) by seven wickets
