WI vs NEP: Ruthless West Indies secure Super 8 spot, knock Nepal out |

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Brief scores: West Indies (134/1 in 15.2 ov) beat Nepal (133/8 in 20 ov) by 9 wickets in Mumbai in a Group C match.

WI vs NEP T20 WORLD CUP 2026: HIGHLIGHTS | SCORECARD

West Indies continued their fine form in the T20 World Cup 2026 with a convincing 9-wicket win over Nepal at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai on Sunday, February 15 to book their spot in the Super 8 stages. The result meant that Nepal saw their campaign get cut short as the early promise shown by the Rhinos in the England game was not to be seen against the two-time champions on the day.

Jason Holder led the way with the ball as he picked up four wickets for 27 runs and was supported by the rest of the pack. Nepal were completely undone in the early stages of the innings by the disciplined performance from the Windies pacer and needed Dipendra Singh Airee’s 58 to get to a respectable total. West Indies started the chase in cautious fashion, knowing that they just needed a win to seal their Super 8 spot and despite losing Brandon King in the powerplay, the partnership of xx runs between Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer was enough to see them over the line.

Hope remained unbeaten on 61 and Hetmyer’s 46 ensured that the dominance was completed in the end in Mumbai, where the West Indies have never lost a single T20 World Cup game.

DID THE RHINOS GET DISTRACTED?

In the early days of the T20 World Cup, Nepal was the ultimate underdog story that everyone loved. Ex-players came in singing their praises after that England performance and expected them to be wildcards in the group.

When big praise comes your way, it is easy to get distracted and that seemed to be the case as they were completely outsmarted by Italy. Nepal coach Stuart Law gave some Alex Ferguson-style hairdryer treatment to his players after that performance against the Azzurri and wanted more against West Indies.

Mind you, they had beaten the Windies, albeit a second-string side, recently in a T20I series before the ICC event. However, from the very first over, the tone was well-set for the contest.

Akeal Hosein cleaned up Khushal Bhurtel and then Matthew Forde continued the fine work with a fiery spell. Forde was in the game for the injured Romario Shepherd and he didn’t disappoint at all. The pacer dismissed Rohit Paudel with a sensational delivery and ended with figures of 10 for one in his four overs.

Holder started off by taking two wickets in his first two overs as Nepal were left reeling 23 for four in 6.3 overs. Airee has been one of the best batters for the Rhinos in international cricket and he continued maintain his focus and keep the scorecard moving with ones and twos and the occasional boundaries.

One of the heroes against England, Lokesh Bam struggled to find the rhythm against the West Indies pacers, who took over the destruction from the spinners after England win.

The biggest issue for Nepal was Airee not finding any support at the other end and he was able to finally get it from Sompal Kami. The duo turned on the heat in the fag end of the innings with Sompal being unbeaten on 26 from 15.

Airee got to his well-deserved fifty and added the accolade of having the highest score by a Nepal batter in the T20 World Cup with his knock.

But on a Wankhede track which looked like a belier, 133 didn’t look to be enough.

WEST INDIES SHOW THEIR METTLE

West Indies have good memories when it comes to playing the T20 World Cup in India as they won the 2016 edition in stunning fashion. This time around, it was all about showing that they weren’t just dependent on big-hitters and are an all-round side.

During the chase, Hope and King never seemed to be in a race to get the game finished and get off the field quickly. Rather it was more calculated and with minimal risk. Whenever the opportunity came in, Hope and King ensured that the ball was heading to the boundary.

Another masterstroke seems to be the use of Hetmyer at No.3. Often seen as a finisher, he has been pushed to the spot vacated by Nicholas Pooran and has scores of 75, 48*, 64, 23 and 46* in his last five games. West Indies needed someone to counter-attack the momentum Nepal got with the wicket of King and that provided by Hetmyer as he took on the Nepal spinners.

It also allowed Hope to take his time in the chase as Hetmyer took on the duty to release the pressure with big hits whenever pressure was being applied.

The duo ensured 68 runs came from overs 7 to 13 as Hope got to his fifty with a big hit and then got another one from Lamichhane to level the scores and seal the win. They have one more game against Italy in Kolkata on Thursday, February 19.

– Ends

Published On:

Feb 15, 2026

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