South Africa seal Ahmedabad epic, West Indies notch second win

A massive day of action at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup is headlined by an epic clash in Ahmedabad where 2024 runners up South Africa survived an emotional rollercoaster against Afghanistan.

Australia started their World Cup campaign with a win over Ireland in Colombo, while England and the West Indies will battle it out in Mumbai in an intriguing clash.

Spin to win for West Indies in Mumbai

Scorecard

England captain Harry Brook won the toss and elected to field first against West Indies in a Group C clash at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

After openers Shai Hope and Brandon King were back inside the first two overs, the West Indies batting line-up shared the load to take the team to 196/6 in 20 overs.

Shimron Hetmyer (23) and Roston Chase (34) gave the team some momentum with a 47-run stand in 28 balls, taking them to 55/3 in powerplay.

Though England kept taking wickets at regular intervals, West Indies fought back with some power hitting. After playing himself in, Sherfane Rutherford let loose, slamming five sixes and two fours for a timely half-century. He struck seven sixes and two fours during an unbeaten 76, and knit important parterships with Powell (51 for the fifth wicket) and Jason Holder (61 for the sixth wicket).

Holder then helped West Indies shift gears, hitting three towering sixes off Sam Curran in the 17th over. His 33 off just 17 balls helped West Indies grab 54 runs in the last four overs.

While Jofra Archer and Curran helped England make early inroads, Adil Rashid was the pick of the bowlers, returning with figures of 2/1. in his four overs. Jamie Overton also claimed two wickets for 33 runs.

Coming in to chase, Phil Salt got off to a blazing start and hit 24 runs off Holder's second over.

Previous game's hat-trick hero Romario Shepherd made an instant impact by dismissing Salt, Rutherford pouching a regulation catch. Jacob Bethell joined Jos Buttler on crease and continued his fine form with a flurry of boundaries. England registerd the second-highest powerplay score of his edition, 67 runs at the loss of one wicket.

Roston Chase and Gudakesh Motie provided the dream start in the middle overs by dismissing Jos Buttler and Tom Banton respectively in consecutive overs.

Skipper Harry Brook came into the middle to support Bethell but Motie's brilliant spin erased any hopes of the pair striking another big partnership. Motie bowled out with the figures of 3/33.

Spin counterpart Chase joined along to pick his second by trapping Will Jacks plumb to leave England reeling at 134/6.

Although Sam Curran showed intent it was not enough as wickets kept tumbling at the other end. Assisted with some outstanding fielding, including two run outs, West Indies clinched a strong win by 30 runs in Mumbai.

Australia register dominant win over Ireland

Scorecard

Australia began their World Cup campaign with a dominant 67-run win over Ireland at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo.

After electing to bat first, Australia were made to work hard for 182/6 in 20 overs on a slow wicket. Four wicket hauls from Nathan Ellis and Adam Zampa helped Australia restrict Ireland to 115.

Despite losing Travis Head early, Australia did well in powerplay, scoring 64 runs in the first six overs. The Aussies kept up the scoring rate, gathering 90 runs in 10 overs, but by then big hitters Cameron Green (21), Glenn Maxwell and Josh Inglis (37) were all back in the pavilion.

Matt Renshaw and Marcus Stoinis steadied the innings with a 61-run partnership. Even as the Irish spinners slowed the flow of runs, Australia kept the scoreboard ticking with some superb running between the wickets. It took Renshaw 29 balls before he hit is first boundary.

While the left-handed Renshaw scored 37, Stoinis top scored with 45 off 29 balls. Australia accelerated towards the end, through Cooper Connolly and Xavier Bartlett, to push past the 180-mark.

Though Ireland had a decent outing with the ball, their fielding once again let them down, fluffing three chances against the former champions.

In response, the Irish chase never really got off the ground. While Ellis' incredible opening spell wrecked the top order, Zampa quashed the embers of Irish resistance.

Ellis began his World Cup with a slower one that beat Ross Adair's defences then had Curtis Campher caught at mid wicket. With 3/5 in his first two overs Eliis left Ireland reeling at 27/4. Adam Zampa made sure Australia remained in control of the match, as he claimed 4/23 in his four overs.

Lorcan Tucker (24) and George Dockrell (41) stitched a 46-run sixth-wicket partnership to limit the damage. But it was too little too late and the Irish challenge ended at 115, with captain Paul Stirling unable to bat again after he was retired hurt for 1.

South Africa beat Afghanistan in a thriller

Scorecard

Afghanistan's hopes of a back-to-back Super 8 appearance at the T20 World Cup were dented as they suffered their second straight defeat. But it wasn't for the lack of effort.

The Asian side took South Africa to the brink, pushing them to two super overs before falling agonisingly short. The teams were tied for 187 in 20 overs, then for 17 in the first super over. The 2024 finalists hammered 23 in the second super over and held their nerve to restrict Afghanistan to 19-2, winning by four runs. It was the first time in a T20 World Cup that two super overs were needed to decide the result.

South Africa are currently second in Group D. Meanwhile, with two defeats in two matches Afghanistan only have a slim chance of making it to Super 8.

Put into bat, South Africa posted a commanding 187/6 Ahmedabad on Wednesday. Though captain Aiden Markram fell early, Quinton de Kock and Ryan Rickleton joined forces and took the game to Afghanistan. Boundaries flowed freely as the left-handed duo built a 116-run partnership in just 61 balls.

De Kock brought up his fifty with a pull for four, scoring 59 runs in 41 balls. Ryan Rickleton was even more devastating, scoring 61 in just 28 balls, with the help of five fours and four sixes.

Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan stalled the South African progress temporarily as he sent back both De Kock and Rickleton in the space of three balls. Lower down the order, Dewald Brevis (23) and David Miller (20 not out) chipped in with cameos as South Africa finished at 187/6.

With Rahmanullah Gurbaz on song, Afghanistan made the perfect start to a challenging chase. Gurbaz struck two fours and three sixes as the Asian side brought up 50 in four overs.

South Africa checked the Afghan run chase with three quick wickets. After Lungi Ngidi castled Ibrahim Zadran, who was just starting to free his arms, he had Gulbadin Naib caught and bowled for zero. Kagiso Rabada then dismissed Sediqullah Atal in the next over, as Afghanistan crashed from 51/0 to 52/3.

However, Gurbaz continued to go for his shots. He made space and cracked a six over cover to bring up his fifty in 26 balls. With the wicketkeeper-bat leading the charge, Afghanistan scored 93/3 in 10 overs. Scoring at an incredible strike rate of 200, Gurbaz slammed seven sixes and four fours.

While Gurbaz's defiant knock ended at 84, Azmatullah Omarzai (22) and Rashid Khan (20) took on the torch and made sure they kept pace with South Africa. Going into the last over, Afghanistan needed 13 runs to win. Just when South Africa needed a disciplined performance from Kagiso Rabada, the pacer bowled a wayward over, starting with a no ball and wide. Afghanistan chugged along to 187, but Farooqi's run out sent the match into the tournament's first super over.

Afghanistan walked into bat first and Azmatullah Omarzai hit a four and a six off the first two balls to take his side to 17/0. With South Africa matching the score, the match headed into another super over.

In the second super over, David Miller and Tristan Stubbs combined to score 23/0. South Africa's Keshav Maharaj gave the team the perfect start, dismissing Mohammad Nabi on the second ball. Gurbaz yet again closed the gap with three sixes in a row, but South Africa held their nerves and restricted Afghanistan to 19/2.