West Indies Storm Into Super Eights With Dominant Nine-Wicket Win Over Nepal

The West Indies became the first team to qualify for the Super Eights of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 after a commanding nine-wicket victory over Nepal in match 25 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Sunday. The result also officially ended Nepal’s hopes of progressing further in the tournament.

After winning the toss, the West Indies opted to bowl first and made immediate inroads. Spinner Akeal Hosein opened the attack and struck early, dismissing Kushal Bhurtel for just one run on the fifth ball of the match. Nepal’s troubles continued in the fourth over when captain Rohit Paudel was trapped lbw by Matthew Forde for five.

Jason Holder then took control of the innings. Aasif Sheikh, who had hit a couple of early boundaries, was dismissed for 11 by Holder as Nepal lost their third wicket inside the powerplay. At the end of six overs, Nepal were struggling at 22 for three.

The pressure mounted as Aarif Sheikh was sent back for two runs by Holder soon after the powerplay. Lokesh Bam’s dismissal for 13 by Shamar Joseph left Nepal reeling at 46 for five in the 11th over. A brief 23-run partnership between Dipendra Singh Airee and Gulsan Jha offered some stability before Gulsan was bowled by Roston Chase for 11.

Dipendra was the standout performer for Nepal. He anchored the innings and shared a crucial 54-run stand for the seventh wicket with Sompal Kami. Dipendra was eventually dismissed by Holder after scoring 58 off 47 balls. Sompal contributed 26 as Nepal finished on 133 for eight in their 20 overs. Holder returned impressive figures of 4 for 27.

Chasing 134, the Shai Hope-led side made light work of the target. Brandon King scored 22 off 17 balls as he and Hope added 43 runs for the first wicket. After King’s dismissal, Shimron Hetmyer joined the captain and ensured there were no further setbacks.

Hope remained unbeaten on 61 off 44 balls, while Hetmyer finished 46 not out off 32 deliveries. The West Indies reached 134 for one in just 15.2 overs to seal a comprehensive win and enter the Super Eights in style.

Brief Score: Nepal 133/8 in 20 overs (Dipendra Singh Airee 58, Sompal Kami 26; Jason Holder 27/4) vs West Indies 134/1 in 15.2 overs (Shai Hope 61, Shimron Hetmyer 46; Nandan Yadav 24/1).

Great Feeling: Shai Hope Delighted As West Indies Become First Team To Enter T20 World Cup Super 8s

West Indies skipper Shai Hope expressed his satisfaction after his side became the first team to qualify for the Super 8 stage of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026, saying it was exactly what the team had set out to achieve from the very beginning of the tournament.

Speaking to reporters after the match, Hope said, “That’s a great feeling. That’s what we set out to do from the jump. And when you got on the plane to come here, that was our first step. We all want to lift the trophy, but there’s a process to get there. So, playing our best cricket, hopefully, we can continue to peak and keep growing as a strong unit in all departments. And when the time comes, those crunch times come, we can always seize those moments and ensure we are on top.”

Hope emphasized that while qualification is an important milestone, the team must focus on building its own identity rather than relying solely on past achievements. He referred to the West Indies’ historic success in the first two 50-over World Cups but underlined the need for this group to create its own legacy.

“It’s very early in the tournament, but it’s important for us to have our own identity as well. We look at the great teams and the great players of the past. We won the first two 50 over World Cups but again that’s their legacy and as you said our coach said we have opportunity to write our own history, but you still got to take it game by game, stage by stage and make sure we hit in our processes so we can write that own history that we’re talking about,” he added.