How will WI vs SA result affect India's semi-final chances in T20 World Cup 2026?
India will face Zimbabwe and the West Indies in their next two matches.
The battle for the semi-finals in Group 1 is witnessing a close competition among all four teams. West Indies, South Africa, India, and Zimbabwe are placed in Group 1, and all four teams are still in the race for the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2026.
South Africa and West Indies won their opening games against India and Zimbabwe, respectively, earning a head start in the race for the semi-finals. With a huge victory over Zimbabwe by 107 runs, the West Indies grab the top spot in the Group 1 points table with two points, while the Proteas follow them in second place with an equal number of points.
To reach the semi-finals, India will have to face a tough challenge from the West Indies and South Africa. The Men-in-Blue have two more games left and need to win both of them. However, it still won’t be enough as they would need a better Net Run Rate (NRR) to finish in the top spot in the points table.
How will West Indies vs South Africa match affect India’s semi-final chances?
While India’s next two games against Zimbabwe and West Indies are crucial, the result of the West Indies vs South Africa match can also impact their future in the ongoing T20 World Cup.
West Indies and South Africa are scheduled to clash on February 26 (Thursday) at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. If the West Indies defeat South Africa, then they will have four points. As a result, the Suryakumar Yadav-led side will have to depend on NRR to leapfrog West Indies in the points table.
Since the West Indies already have a high NRR of +5.350 compared to India’s -3.800, beating them on NRR will become a challenging task for Suryakumar Yadav & Co. Moreover, the Indian team will clash with the West Indies in their final game of Super 8, and they will already know the difference in defeating West Indies.
Therefore, even if the West Indies lose against India but do not allow the latter to win by the required margin, then Shai Hope & Co. will book a berth in the semi-finals. Notably, this whole scenario is considering that South Africa will outplay Zimbabwe in their last match of the Super 8.
When will the West Indies vs South Africa match take place?
The match will take place on February 26 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
How will India’s semi-final chances be affected if the West Indies beat South Africa?
If the West Indies beat South Africa, India will have to depend on the Net Run Rate to qualify for the semi-finals.
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Vikas Singh Derek is a core cricket-lover since childhood and has always followed the sport both in his personal and professional life. He started his school life by watching cricket at home with family. Later, he played cricket on the field at local clubs during college. After his Master's in Journalism from Mumbai, he followed his passion by covering cricket news across various digital media. Since 2015, he has been an aspiring sports journalist and cricket content writer with over 50K+ articles.