T20 World Cup 2026: KG Rabada’s twin strikes rock West Indies in high-voltage Super Eight showdown

Published - 26 Feb 2026, 15:40 IST | Updated - 26 Feb 2026, 15:42 IST

South African pace spearhead Kagiso Rabada delivered a fiery spell against West Indies in the Super Eight clash of Group A on February 26 at Narendra Modi Stadium during the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026. South Africa won the toss and elected to bowl first.

Rabada was introduced in the third over and wasted no time making an impact. On the second ball of the over, he bowled a sharp back-of-a-length delivery to West Indies captain Shai Hope. The ball shaped away from outside off, tempting Hope to go hard at a cut shot. However, the extra bounce proved decisive as the right-hander managed only a faint edge through to wicketkeeper Quinton de Kock, who completed a simple catch. Hope’s quickfire cameo ended at 16 off just six balls, an innings that included one four and two sixes.

Rabada struck again later in the over to remove the dangerous Shimron Hetmyer. He shortened his length and angled the ball across the batter and forced the left-handed batter into an ambitious pull shot. The mistimed stroke ballooned towards mid-wicket, where Keshav Maharaj moved swiftly to his right and held on to a sharp catch with his fingers pointing upward.

𝙍𝙖𝙗𝙖𝙙𝙖 𝙤𝙣 𝙖 𝙧𝙖𝙢𝙥𝙖𝙜𝙚! 💥💥Two wickets in an over & South Africa seize early control 💪ICC Men’s #T20WorldCup | Super 8 #WIvSA | LIVE NOW 👉 https://t.co/IaEbZJRFNR

Interestingly, Hetmyer had survived a scare earlier in the same over when a miscued drive popped up off the inner half of the bat. Corbin Bosch misjudged his jump and spilled the chance. However, Maharaj ensured there were no further lapses as South Africa tightened their grip by claiming two crucial wickets in quick succession.

Regarding their campaign, South Africa have been dominant, defeating New Zealand, Afghanistan, Canada, and UAE in the group stage before overpowering India in their first Super Eight match. Another victory here would virtually secure their semifinal berth. The West Indies, unbeaten in the group stage with wins over England, Nepal, Italy, and Scotland, also began the Super Eight strongly by defeating Zimbabwe and will look to bounce back against the Proteas to strengthen their semifinal hopes.