Big picture: Clash of the heavyweights
Is the ICC's Super Eight the silliest qualifying process in the sporting universe? The unfathomable permutations of UEFA's rejigged Champions League might beg otherwise. But it's surely in a club of two.
After precisely two completed fixtures in an impressively sub-standard Group 2 of this T20 World Cup, we already knew our first semi-finalists … and even England themselves might be wondering how on earth they are still pointing in the right direction after their endless flirtations with catastrophe.
Over in Ahmedabad, however, there's significantly more jeopardy brewing in Group 1. West Indies and South Africa, the two remaining unbeaten teams in the tournament, are gearing up for a heavyweight clash of the most literal variety … but even after they've finished battering seven bells out of each other, the victors will have no guarantees of progression just yet.
For West Indies, in particular, this feels like a must-win contest. They could hardly have laid out a more emphatic marker than their 107-run win over Zimbabwe on Monday. But, even allowing for that hefty NRR boost, a wounded India await as their final Super Eight fixture on Sunday. If that ends up being a straight knockout, then it'd be best to lay the killer blow here and now.
West Indies certainly have the form and the focus to do so. But, thrillingly, so do their opponents. In a tournament marked by reticence from a host of likely contenders, West Indies and South Africa have both been refreshingly route-one in their approach. Shimron Hetmyer's 85 from 34 balls against Zimbabwe may have been the apogee of attacking batting in the tournament to date, but it was merely a continuation of the pedal-to-metal approach that enabled his team to out-muscle England by 13 sixes to six in their statement victory in Mumbai a fortnight ago.
South Africa, similarly, have not been backward in coming forward. India must have thought their last contest was in the bag when Jasprit Bumrah reprised his Barbados impact to reduce them to 20 for 3 after four overs at this same venue. They reckoned without a relentlessly aggressive middle order of Dewald Brevis, David Miller and Tristan Stubbs, who kept piling into the breach to produce a total of 187 for 7 that Marco Jansen soon proved to be more than enough to defend. A win on Thursday will almost certainly place South Africa in the semis, unless India lose all three games in the Super Eight.
More such bravery will be the requirement on Thursday. On a localised level, it's thrilling to have such a high-stakes encounter at this stage of the competition. In reality, though, each of the tournament's three likeliest winners would appear to have been crammed into the same under-sized pool. It's sink-or-risk-being-sunk time at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
Form guide
West Indies WWWWW (last five completed T20Is, most recent first)
South Africa WWWWW
In the spotlight: Marco Jansen and Shimron Hetmyer
With 11 wickets at 12.18 - including eight in his last two outings, at this very venue, against New Zealand and India - Marco Jansen has the form and the method to make another statement impact for his team. Five of those wickets came in the powerplay - three against New Zealand, though they used his pace and bounce against him in between whiles, and two against India, who were never allowed to rally after his first-ball extraction of Tilak Varma. Every team craves a rangy left-arm seamer in this format, and Jansen's combinations of angle, accuracy and steepling bounce mark him out as one of the very best.
The former South Africa captain talks about how Lungi Ngidi developed his slower ball skills at CSK
If West Indies are to win, their batters need to keep swinging with the freedom and confidence that has brought them this far already. And no-one epitomises their current mood better than Shimron Hetmyer. With 219 runs at 54.75, he is the tournament's second-highest run-scorer, behind Sahibzada Farhan's tally of 283. In terms of pure six-hitting, his tally of 17 puts him way out on his own. If his game can sometimes seem too loose to function consistently, then it is entirely in keeping with West Indies' mighty T20I heritage, including his 2016 forebears who counted almost exclusively in boundaries as they powered to their second world title, here on Indian soil, a decade ago.
Team news: Hard hitters to the fore
No obvious reasons for West Indies to tinker with their winning formula, although Roston Chase's offspin could be a consideration, especially with the significant core of left-handers in South Africa's batting ranks. He would also add further depth to the batting line-up.
West Indies (probable): 1 Brandon King, 2 Shai Hope (capt & wk), 3 Shimron Hetmyer, 4 Rovman Powell, 5 Sherfane Rutherford, 6 Romario Shepherd, 7 Jason Holder, 8 Matthew Forde, 9 Akeal Hosein / Roston Chase, 10 Gudakesh Motie, 11 Shamar Joseph.
The team that took on India was the strongest that South Africa could have put out, and for such a crunch contest, there's no reason to think they'll fiddle with their options.
South Africa (probable): 1 Aiden Markram (capt), 2 Quinton de Kock (wk), 3 Ryan Rickelton, 4 Dewald Brevis, 5 David Miller, 6 Tristan Stubbs, 7 Marco Jansen, 8 Corbin Bosch, 9 Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, 11 Lungi Ngidi.
Faf du Plessis says the conditions in Ahmedabad could determine SA's bowling strategy against West Indies
Pitch and conditions
It promises to be another scorching hot day in Ahmedabad, where the 3pm start time will offer no respite from the conditions. Pitch 7 has been allocated for this contest, which means red soil and the prospect of some extra bounce, although that didn't exactly materialise for the previous match. Either way, it's likely to be good for batting, especially given the reputations of these line-ups.
Stats and trivia
West Indies have won 15 and lost 14 of their previous 29 T20Is against South Africa.
South Africa have, however, won four of their five encounters at the T20 World Cup against the same opposition.
The exception came in 2016, in Nagpur, where West Indies' three-wicket victory set them on their way to their second World T20 title.
Quotes
"After the win against India, there was a real sort of energy and charge throughout the camp. We beat probably the best side in the competition if you look at it. But we're not getting carried away on that."
Keshav Maharaj isn't hiding away from the team's confidence boost last time out.
"There's no point to prove for us. We came here, like any other team, to play in the main competition. A lot of people have us flying under the radar. But we plan every game to go in there with a positive mentality to win the games."
Floyd Reifer, West Indies' batting coach, is refusing to let his team get ahead of themselves.
