Watch: Romario Shepherd’s 52 powers West Indies to fighting total vs South Africa in T20 World Cup 2026
Romario Shepherd’s unbeaten 52 rescued West Indies from collapse and powered them to 176/8 in a crucial Super 8 clash against South Africa.
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The West Indies were set to face South Africa in a highly important Super 8 match of the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup on February 26 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. South Africa won the toss and chose to bowl first, hoping to capitalize on the initial conditions of the pitch. The semi-final spot was at stake in this highly important match for both teams. The pressure was high from the very first ball.
Romario Shepherd turned out to be the standout performer with the bat. Walking in at a difficult moment with West Indies at 86/7, he held his nerve brilliantly. Shepherd remained unbeaten on 52 off 37 balls, smashing three fours and four sixes. His late boundary off the last ball of the innings helped his team reach a respectable total of 176/8 .
This knock was special because it was Shepherd’s maiden T20I half-century. His previous best was 49 against New Zealand in November 2025. Earlier in this World Cup, he had scored 21 off 10 balls against Zimbabwe and just 6 against Scotland. He also owns a career-best 53* in the IPL (2025), but this was his first fifty for West Indies in T20 Internationals.
Shepherd and Holder Rescue West Indies
The West Indies innings had two different phases. They started strongly at 29/0 in two overs but then lost seven wickets for 83 runs. At that stage, a big collapse seemed likely. However, Shepherd and Jason Holder (49 off 31) added a crucial 89-run partnership for the eighth wicket to guide the team to 176/8 in 20 overs.
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South Africa’s bowlers had earlier dominated the innings. Lungi Ngidi bowled impressively, giving away 3/30, including important wickets like Brandon King and Rovman Powell. Kagiso Rabada took 2/22, while Corbin Bosch took 2/31. Shepherd and Holder then staged a late counterattack to swing the momentum as Marco Jansen gave 50 runs in his 4 overs.
As of writing, South Africa are 49/0 after 4.4 overs, with Aiden Markram unbeaten on 39 and Quinton de Kock on 9, needing 128 runs from 92 balls.
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Gopi Marisetty
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