The battle between the two undefeated teams at the 2026 International Cricket Council (ICC) Men's T20 World Cup turned out to be a mismatch, as South Africa pummelled West Indies by nine wickets in their Super 8s clash in Ahmedabad on February 26.

Similar to their performance against India, the Proteas delivered a clinical showing to move to the summit of group one in the Super 8s phase. After an ultra-aggressive start by the Windies in the first two overs, the South African pacers made steady inroads as the Men In Maroon quickly slipped to 43 for four inside the power play after being asked to bat first.

The approach by the Windies batsmen wasn't curbed, and they slid to 83 for seven by the 11th over before a record eighth-wicket partnership between Jason Holder (49 off 31 balls) and Romario Shepherd (52 not out off 37) saw the team recovering to post 176 for eight. The 89-run partnership between Holder and Shepherd was the highest eight-wicket stand in T20 Internationals, but it did little to stop the onslaught which followed from the Proteas top order.

Both Lungi Ngidi (three for 30) and Kagiso Rabada (two for 22) got the ball rolling for South Africa with a pair of wickets in the power play, with Corbin Bosch (two for 31) also joining the party with the scalps of Sherfane Rutherford (12) and Matthew Forde (11).

With the ball, the Windies were unable to extract the same bounce the Proteas fast bowlers got early on, as a belligerent Aiden Markram (82 not out off 46) and Quinton de Kock (47 off 24) took their team to 69 without loss through the power play overs.

Brought into the West Indies XI for left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein, off-spinner Roston Chase (one for 46) got the only wicket in the South African innings as they stormed to victory with 23 balls to spare. Markram hit seven fours and four sixes in his innings, with Ryan Rickelton clouting four fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 45 as the Proteas bullied their way to 177 for one.

At Eden Gardens, Kolkata on March 1, the West Indies will need to regain their winning touch quickly when they face holders India with a semifinal spot up for grabs. At the time of publication, India were gearing up for their Super 8s clash with Zimbabwe in Chennai.

The top two teams in the two Super 8 groups will progress to the semis.

Summarised Scores:

WEST INDIES: 176/8 from 20 overs (Romario Shepherd 52 not out, Jason Holder 49, Brandon King 21; Lungi Ngidi 3/30, Kagiso Rabada 2/22) vs SOUTH AFRICA: 177/1 from 16.1 overs (Aiden Markram 82 not out, Quinton de Kock 47, Ryan Rickelton 45 not out; Roston Chase 1/46). South Africa won by nine wickets.