Shimron Hetmyer lit up the Wankhede with one of the great T20 World Cup innings, smashing a 34-ball 85 as West Indies crushed Zimbabwe’s attack to post a gigantic 254/6 in their Super 8 Group 1 clash in Mumbai. The Caribbean side’s total is the highest of T20 World Cup 2026 and the second-highest in tournament history, behind only Sri Lanka’s 260/6 against Kenya in 2007.

Hetmyer’s Record-Breaking Assault

Coming in at 17/1 after Brandon King fell to Richard Ngarava in the third over, Hetmyer initially took his time before exploding into a brutal hitting spree. He first built a 37-run stand with captain Shai Hope (14), then completely shifted gears once settled.

Key numbers from Hetmyer’s blitz:

  • Runs: 85 off 34

  • Fours: 7

  • Sixes: 7

  • Fifty: in just 19 balls – the fastest by any West Indies batter in T20 World Cup history, beating his own 22-ball effort vs Scotland earlier in this tournament.

Dropped twice by Tashinga Musekiwa – once on 10 at long leg and again in the 70s – Hetmyer made Zimbabwe pay heavily. He:

  • Took Ngarava for back-to-back boundaries in the fifth over.

  • Nailed consecutive sixes off Graeme Cremer in the seventh, both into the leg-side stands.

  • Belted Sikandar Raza for 20 in an over to reach his fifty off 19 balls, then later launched a 108-metre monster into cow corner as he took 33 off Raza in just nine balls.

He and Rovman Powell added 122 off 52 balls for the third wicket, bringing up their hundred stand in just 45 deliveries. Hetmyer finally fell for 85, miscuing a swipe off Cremer and caught in the deep by Brian Bennett.

Powell, Rutherford Finish The Job

While Hetmyer played the headline act, Rovman Powell provided the perfect foil with a powerful 59 off 35 balls. The West Indies skipper:

  • Hit 4 fours and 4 sixes.

  • Reached his fifty from 29 deliveries.

He too fell in the death overs, caught by Musekiwa off Blessing Muzarabani in the 17th over. By then, the damage was irreparable.

West Indies’ middle-overs surge was staggering: they hammered 139/2 between overs 7 and 16, the second-highest tally ever in that phase in T20 World Cups (Sri Lanka’s 141/3 vs Kenya in 2007 remains top).

The late-innings carnage came from:

  • Sherfane Rutherford: 31* off 13 (3 fours, 2 sixes).

  • Jason Holder: 13 off 4, including two sixes in the final over off Muzarabani.

  • Romario Shepherd: a 21 off 10 cameo with three sixes before falling in the 19th over.

West Indies’ 19 sixes equalled the record for most in a T20 World Cup innings, matching Netherlands’ 19 vs Ireland in 2014.

Records Tumble At Wankhede

The innings rewrote the T20 World Cup record books:

  • 254/6 – second-highest team total in T20 World Cup history, behind Sri Lanka’s 260/6 vs Kenya (2007).

  • Highest total of T20 World Cup 2026 so far.

  • Highest T20I total ever against Zimbabwe, surpassing India’s 234/2 in Harare in 2024.

  • Third 250-plus total for West Indies in T20Is, taking them level with Zimbabwe for joint second-most such scores.

On the ground level, it also became the biggest total at this T20 World Cup at Wankhede, a venue already famed for batting fireworks.

Zimbabwe Left With A Mountain To Climb

Nothing went right for Zimbabwe after Raza chose to bowl first.

  • Ngarava struck early but then went the distance once Hetmyer switched on.

  • Muzarabani and Cremer both copped heavy punishment, while Raza himself suffered, conceding 33 to Hetmyer in nine balls and leaving the field temporarily after being hit by a Powell straight return.

With 255 needed for victory, Zimbabwe face a near-impossible chase against an unbeaten West Indies side that topped Group C and already owns a statement win over England at this venue.

In a tournament stacked with big scores and high drama, Hetmyer’s 34-ball 85 may stand as the defining power-hitting clinic of this World Cup – and a warning shot to every contender in the Super 8s.