T20 World Cup 2026: Hetmyer’s fifty, Shepherd’s hat-trick propel West Indies to 35-run win against Scotland

Like one of his blazing knocks in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Shimron Hetmyer unleashed a blistering half-century to rewrite a Caribbean record and power two-time champion West Indies to an emphatic 35–run victory over late entrant Scotland in their opening Group-C match of the T20 World Cup at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Saturday.

Romario Sheperd’s five-wicket haul, including a hat-trick, was the icing on the cake.

Inserted, West Indies posted a formidable 182 for five before wrapping up the Scotland innings for 147.

The Caribbeans managed 33 for no loss in the PowerPlay before openers Brandon King (35, 30b, 4×4, 1×6), who plundered 17 runs off Safyaan Sharif in the seventh over, and captain Shai Hope added 54.

Hetmyer (64, 36b, 2×4, 6×6) replaced Hope in the ninth over and thoroughly entertained the 18,140 spectators with his aerial blitzkrieg, including his massive, breathtaking pulls to the stands. The southpaw reached his half-century in 22 balls to break Chris Gayle’s 17-year-old record of a 23-ball fifty, the fastest by a West Indian in a T20 World Cup.

Hetmyer’s fire-power dwarfed the efforts of Rovman Powell (24, 14b, 1×4, 2×6) and Sherfane Rutherford (26, 13b, 4×4, 1×6). A sensational catch by Brandon McMullen off Sharif at deep midwicket ended Hetmyer’s innings in the penultimate over.

Scotland’s reply was on expected lines. It lost three wickets, including that of George Munsey, to a stunning catch by Hetmyer off Shamar Joseph, inside six overs before captain Richie Berrington (42, 24b, 3×4, 2×6) and Tom Bruce (35, 28b, 1×4, 2×6) put up a fight by adding 78 runs.

Shepherd scalped four desperate Scottish batters, including a hat-trick (Matthew Cross, Michael Leask and Oliver Davidson), in his third over and his team’s 17th to earn his maiden fifer in West Indies’ comprehensive win.

Published on Feb 07, 2026