SA Vs NZ Toss (Source: Screengrab)
Ahead of the all-important T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final between South Africa and New Zealand, NZ captain Mitchell Santner won the toss and asked SA to bat first at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. Both teams made changes in their playing XIs for the high-octane contest on Wednesday.
While South Africa brought back their three regulars – Kagiso Rabada, Marco Jansen and Keshav Maharaj – after resting them all in a dead-rubber Super 8 contest against Zimbabwe, New Zealand added Jimmy Neesham back in their playing XI, replacing Ish Sodhi.
Let's take a look at the confirmed playing XIs of both South Africa and New Zealand.
SA Vs NZ Playing XIs
New Zealand Playing XI: Tim Seifert, Finn Allen (wk), Rachin Ravindra, Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Daryl Mitchell, Mitchell Santner (c), Jimmy Neesham, Cole McConchie, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson
South Africa Playing XI: Aiden Markram (c), Quinton de Kock (wk), Ryan Rickelton, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi
Also Read: Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, Pitch Report, Weather Report For IND vs ENG- Semifinal, T20 World Cup 2026
SA Vs NZ: Captains' Thoughts
Mitchell Santner: "We gonna have a bowl, the pitch looked pretty good the other night. We know they are a great outfit and we know we gotta be on, we need to do our thing put them under pressure and see what happens. Matt Henry has made it back in time. So he is there. Neesham is back."
Aiden Markram: "Everyone contributed at some stage which is really pleasing. Hopefully we can start well with the bat and put a good score on the board. We trained here last night and putting runs on the board in a knock-out game is not the worst thing. We got 3 changes. Rabada, Marco Jansen and Keshav Maharaj is back for us."
SA Vs NZ: The T20 World Cup Journey So Far
Having defeated New Zealand, Canada, the UAE and Afghanistan, South Africa topped Group D as an unbeaten side ahead of the Super 8 stage. They remained unbeaten in the next stage as well, which included a massive victory over India. Hence, it is safe to say that the Aiden Markram-led side are clear favourties to win the fixture.
New Zealand, on the other hand, were second in their Super 8 group, behind England. They lost two matches, one against South Africa and another against England, and also had a game washed out, against Pakistan. Their victories came against the UAE, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.
Needless to say, the journey matters very little in a knockout match, as both teams will go all guns blazing in a do-or-die. While South Africa, last edition’s runner-ups will love to complete the unifinished business from 2024, New Zealand would look to avenge their group stage defeat against the Proteas to enter the final once again as a dark-horse.
Also Read: Mohammad Yousuf Takes Dig At Mohsin Naqvi After Sarfaraz Ahmed Becomes Pakistan Coach
