Manoj Tiwary joked that Indian players would not get Indian Premier League contracts if they failed to defeat the West Indies. "India have scored 256 in their last match, so from that position, they should go through. There is no pressure at all. The expectation would be to score over 200 and defeat the West Indies easily. If they can't defeat the West Indies, no one will get IPL contracts," he said during a discussion on Cricbuzz.

The West Indies batters are world-famous for their insane hitting ability. That is something that separates the Windies from the rest. Indian bowlers will have to come well prepared and execute their plans properly to keep the West Indies batters in check.

pic.twitter.com/3eZi4CzNOH

— BCCI (@BCCI) March 1, 2026

Ahead of his side's must-win T20 World Cup Super Eight clash against India in Kolkata, West Indies head coach Daren Sammy warned that "history could repeat itself". Notably, Sammy-led West Indies had defeated India by 7 wickets in the T20 World Cup 2016 semi-final in Mumbai.

"Well, there is a saying that history could repeat itself, although it was a different venue. But it is two different teams, two teams trying to move on in the tournament. You're absolutely right," said Sammy ahead of the game.

Abhishek Sharma started the tournament with three consecutive ducks. He scored his first runs of the T20 World Cup against South Africa, making 15 in that game. The southpaw adopted a smarter approach against Zimbabwe and smashed 55 off 30 balls. It was an uncharacteristic Abhishek innings, but the runs would surely have given him much-needed confidence ahead of the crucial match against West Indies.

India: Sanju Samson (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakaravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Rinku Singh, Washington Sundar, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav.

West Indies: Brandon King, Shai Hope (wicketkeeper/captain), Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell, Roston Chase, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Jason Holder, Matthew Forde, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Joseph, Johnson Charles, Akeal Hosein, Jayden Seales, Quentin Sampson.

In case there is rain and no play is possible, both India and West Indies will share points, moving to three points each. Such a result will eliminate India and see the Windies advance to the semi-finals on the basis of a better Net Run Rate.

Check out the points table –

Both sides have played 30 T20I matches against each other. India have won 19, while West Indies have won 10. In the last five contests between the two teams, India have won two and lost three.

Performance of both teams in their respective last 5 matches -

India: W, W, W, L, W

West Indies: W, W, W, W, L

India lost their opening Super Eight encounter to South Africa by a huge margin of 76 runs, but the side made a strong comeback with a 72‑run win over Zimbabwe, keeping their semi-final hopes alive. The path to the next round is straightforward — beat West Indies and enter the knockouts.

There are no chances of rain during the game. As per AccuWeather, the probability is zero. Have a look at the weather forecast during the match -

The T20 World Cup 2026 Super Eight match between India and West Indies will take place at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The toss will be held at 6:30 PM IST, and the action will begin half an hour later.

Hello everyone, welcome to the live blog of the India vs West Indies T20 World Cup Super Eight match. This is a virtual quarter-final, as the winner will earn a spot in the semi-finals while the loser will be knocked out of the tournament. Stay connected for more!