Italy Bowl First vs West Indies in T20 WC 2026 Final Group Clash

Italy won the toss and elected to bowl first against the West Indies in their final group match of the T20 World Cup 2026 at Eden Gardens. The West Indies have already qualified for the Super 8 stage with a perfect record so far, while Italy, in their tournament debut, are out of contention. Italian captain Harry Manenti cited exploiting early conditions as the reason for bowling first, aiming to take early wickets. Both teams have named their playing XIs, with the match serving as a final competitive outing for Italy and a form-seeker for the West Indies.

Key Points: Italy vs West Indies T20 WC 2026: Toss, Playing 11, Preview

  • West Indies already qualified for Super 8s
  • Italy eliminated but playing for pride
  • Italy captain Manenti chooses to bowl first
  • West Indies aim for perfect group stage record
2 min read

T20 WC 2026: Italy win toss, choose to bowl first against West Indies at Eden Gardens

Italy opts to bowl against West Indies in final T20 World Cup 2026 group match. West Indies aim for perfect record, Italy play for pride. Full playing XIs and toss update.

"We look forward to the challenge and hopefully we can step it up and really compete with them today. - Harry Manenti"

Kolkata, February 19

Italy captain Harry Manenti won the toss and chose to bowl first against West Indies in both teams' last group-stage match of the ongoing ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026, at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday.

The West Indies, along with England, have already qualified for the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup 2026 after securing three wins in as many matches so far in the tournament. The Shai Hope-led team will look to win their match against Italy and enter the Super 8s with a perfect record.

Italy, on the other hand, playing in their first-ever men's T20 World Cup, have won just one of their three matches so far and are already out of the Super 8s race. However, they will look to play with freedom and leave the subcontinent on a positive note.

Italt vs West Indies T20 WC 2026 match playing 11s:

Italy playing 11: Justin Mosca, Anthony Mosca, Syed Naqvi, JJ Smuts, Harry Manenti(c), Ben Manenti, Grant Stewart, Gian Meade(w), Crishan Kalugamage, Thomas Draca, Ali Hasan

West Indies playing 11: Brandon King, Shai Hope(w/c), Shimron Hetmyer, Roston Chase, Sherfane Rutherford, Rovman Powell, Jason Holder, Matthew Forde, Akeal Hosein, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Joseph.

Harry Manenti, after winning the toss, announced that his team would bowl first to exploit early conditions and aim for early wickets. He expressed confidence from their previous match against England and acknowledged the challenge of playing a strong West Indies side.

"We're going to have a bowl today. We get caught - there's a touch in the wicket early, hopefully this morning and give ourselves the best crack to try and swing a few up front and take some early wickets. We take some confidence out of our last game against England, I think, against a really strong side. Obviously, we play West Indies today, who are another really powerful team and have had success in this format for a long time. So we look forward to the challenge and hopefully we can step it up and really compete with them today," Manenti said at the toss.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

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Sarah B
Interesting toss decision by Italy. Bowling first at Eden Gardens can be tricky if the pitch is flat. West Indies will look to post a huge total. Shamar Joseph vs the Italian top order could be fun to watch!
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Arjun K
Honestly, the article is fine but the focus is too much on the already-qualified West Indies. Would have liked more insight into Italy's journey, how a European team with players of varied origins builds a squad. That's the real story of global cricket.
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Priyanka N
Eden Gardens hosting a match like this is fantastic for the city! The atmosphere must be electric, even if it's not India playing. Hope the Italian players enjoy the iconic ground. Forza Italia! But Windies to win comfortably 😄
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Karthik V
The Manenti brothers leading Italy! Good to see. Their strategy of bowling first makes sense - try to create early pressure. But against this West Indies middle order with Powell and Rutherford, it will be a massive challenge. Expecting a high-scoring game.
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Michael C
Just happy the World Cup is in India. Best place for cricket. Hope the Italian fans traveling get a warm welcome. The game needs more nations competing at this level. A good performance from Italy today could inspire a lot back home.

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