Ahmedabad, February 14 – In a match between two Test-playing nations, South Africa captain Aiden Markram won the toss and decided to bowl first against New Zealand in Match 24 of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Saturday.
South Africa made one change for this match, bringing in Corbin Bosch, while New Zealand decided to field the same playing XI that featured in their previous match.
Markram said they have played a night game here, and they feel it gets better to bat as the night progresses. "It was tough," he said when asked about the match against Afghanistan that was decided in the second Super Over.
New Zealand skipper Santner said he would have fielded first, too, but now that they are batting first, the focus for them will be to put runs on the board. He says they know how good South Africa are, and intend to continue the small improvements they have made in each game.
Both teams have won their first two matches, though in contrasting styles, as the Proteas were nearly knocked out by Afghanistan.
Playing XIs:
New Zealand: Tim Seifert (wk), Finn Allen, Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Daryl Mitchell, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner (capt), James Neesham, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson, Jacob Duffy
South Africa: Aiden Markram (capt), Quinton de Kock (wk), Ryan Rickelton, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi
