Shimron Hetmyer smashed a breathtaking 34-ball 85 as West Indies crushed Zimbabwe by 107 runs in their Super 8s Group 1 match of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday.
Promoted to No. 2 in the batting order, Hetmyer tore into the Zimbabwe attack with seven fours and seven sixes, bringing up the fastest fifty by a West Indies batter in T20 World Cup history off just 19 balls. His assault powered West Indies to a towering 254 for six in 20 overs — the highest total of the 2026 edition and the second-highest in the tournament’s history.
Rovman Powell provided strong support with a 35-ball 59 as the pair shared a 122-run partnership for the third wicket. Sherfane Rutherford (31 not out off 13) and Jason Holder (13 off 4) added late impetus to cap a dominant batting display.
Zimbabwe’s chase never gained momentum as they slumped to 20 for three inside three overs. Captain Sikander Raza made 27 off 20 balls despite briefly leaving the field after being struck by a shot, while Dion Myer added 28 off 15.
Brad Evans struck 43 off 21 balls with five sixes to offer late resistance, but Zimbabwe were bowled out for 147 in 17.4 overs.
Left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie claimed four for 28, while Akeal Hosein took three for 28 to dismantle the Zimbabwe line-up. Matthew Forde chipped in with two for 27.
The emphatic victory significantly boosted West Indies’ net run rate ahead of crucial Super 8 clashes against South Africa and India.
Brief scores:
West Indies 254-6 (Shimron Hetmyer 85, Rovman Powell 59; Blessing Muzarabani 2-42, Richard Ngarava 2-47) beat Zimbabwe 147 all out (Brad Evans 43; Gudakesh Motie 4-28, Akeal Hosein 3-28) by 107 runs.
