West Indies cricket team will be looking to seal their spot in the T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final with a win against a formidable South Africa in their next Super 8 fixture on Thursday. The Men in Maroon handed Zimbabwe a mammoth 107-run defeat to settle on top of the points table in Group 1, boasting of a NRR of +5.350. By no means will the contest against the Proteas be an easy task for Shai Hope and co, given that the opposition have been unbeaten in the marquee tournament so far.
Predicted West Indies playing XI vs SA
| Position | Player | Role |
| 1. | Brandon King | Opener |
| 2. | Shai Hope (C & WK) | Keeper-Batter |
| 3. | Shimron Hetmyer | Batter |
| 4. | Rovman Powell | Batter |
| 5. | Sherfane Rutherford | All-rounder |
| 6. | Romario Shepherd | All-rounder |
| 7. | Jason Holder | All-rounder |
| 8. | Matthew Forde | Bowler |
| 9. | Jayden Seales | Bowler |
| 10. | Gudakesh Motie | Spinner |
| 11. | Shamar Joseph | Bowler |
West Indies will be expected to field a pace-heavy unit in the game against South Africa at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. After all, the Indian spinners tasted least success when they took on the Proteas at the same venue on Sunday. This could might as well prompt WI to replace Akeal Hosein with Jayden Seales in the playing XI in the must-win tie against SA. Otherwise, no changes are expected to be made to their line-up, given that they have managed to strike the right balance.
Motie remains as the lone specialist spinner in the side while the pace department will be spearheaded by Shamar and will comprise of Holder, Forde and Seales. Hetmyer will continue to bat at number 3 and West Indies will be hoping for the batter to go all guns blazing on the big stage.
WI squad for T20 World Cup 2026
Shai Hope (c), Shimron Hetmyer, Johnson Charles, Brandon King, Roston Chase, Jason Holder, Rovman Powell, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Quentin Sampson, Akeal Hosein, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Joseph, Jayden Seales, Matthew Forde.
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