Former India pacer Zaheer Khan has predicted the four semi-finalists of the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024. The group stage of the tournament is now over and the Super 8 games are all set to begin.
At the beginning of the competition, a total of 20 teams were competing in the group stage. The teams were divided into four groups of five teams each. Of the 20 teams, only eight managed to advance to the group stage. The eight teams are: India, United States, Australia, England, West Indies, Afghanistan, South Africa and Bangladesh.
The eight teams have been divided into two groups. India, Australia, Afghanistan and Bangladesh are in the first group, while co-hosts West Indies, South Africa, the United States and defending champions England are in the second group. In the Super 8, each team will play once against the other three teams in the group. In the end, the two best teams will qualify for the semi-finals.
Super 8 Group:
Group 1 Group 2 India United States Australia England Afghanistan Antilles Bangladesh South Africa
Zaheer Khan predicts the semi-finalists:
Ahead of the first Super 8 game of the ongoing tournament, Zaheer Khan picked India, Australia, South Africa and West Indies as the four semi-finalists, while snubbing reigning champions England. When asked about the reason for leaving out England, the former India paceman explained that West Indies will have the home advantage and are also in good form.
He further said that South Africa looks very strong on paper and their batting line-up can devastate any opposition. Zaheer Khan then called Australia the most consistent team in the competition so far before backing India’s batsmen to bounce back in good batting condition.
Meanwhile, the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup will begin on Wednesday (June 19) with the match between the United States and South Africa in Antigua. India, on the other hand, will begin their Super 8 campaign on Thursday (June 20) taking on Afghanistan in Barbados.