After a terrible start to the Super 8s, courtesy a heavy defeat to South Africa, India roared back with a thumping win over Zimbabwe to keep their semifinal hopes intact. With the Proteas handing a defeat to West Indies, the equation is now crystal clear for India and the Caribbean superstars. Their tussle at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday (March 1) is now a virtual quarterfinal.
Zimbabwe have officially been eliminated and the winner of the India-West Indies clash shall join South Africa as the two teams from Group 1 to make the semifinals of T20 World Cup 2026. As always, the pitch will be a major talking point of this high-stakes clash. Since the pitches got relaid in 2017-18, Kolkata has been amongst the highest scoring venues in the IPL. But, T20Is show a different picture.
The average score batting first in T20Is has been 161 from a sample size of 18 matches. Historically a chasing ground, T20Is have seen a 50-50 split between teams batting first and teams chasing when it comes to matches won. In T20 World Cup 2026, the pitches at Eden have behaved similar to IPL matches of previous seasons with two totals of 200-plus already been recorded.
Average score batting first across five matches at Eden Gardens in T20 World Cup 2026 is approximately 182 and teams batting first have won four of those games. Understandably, the nature of the surface will be a key factor in the India-West Indies game. While reports suggest another fine batting surface, it is also expected to be a black-soil track, which means that it could be a touch on the slower side too.
India's bowling attack has been under pressure in this T20 World Cup and the ploy to have Shivam Dube as the sixth bowling option hasn't worked at all. To make matters worse, the twin strike force of Jasprit Bumrah and Varun Chakaravarthy have been dealt with reasonably well, allowing opposition batters to take down the other bowlers, especially on flat tracks.
Dew could be a factor and that could tempt both captains to take the chasing option, because black-soil surfaces tend to get extremely better with dew around. How India's spinners fare against West Indies' powerpacked middle order will decide the fate of this must-win encounter.
