In their group stage match at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad, New Zealand was defeated by the West Indies by 13 runs in the ongoing T20 World Cup. As a result, the Black Caps are all but eliminated and the co-hosts are guaranteed a spot in the Super 8. Nearly.
Yes, New Zealand still has two games remaining against Uganda and Papua New Guinea, even if the Black Caps lost their second straight game in Group C, leaving them with zero points and an NRR of -2.425 at the bottom of the five-team standings.
In terms of math, New Zealand is still in the running to make it to the Super 8, when only two teams from each group advance. With three victories in three games, co-hosts West Indies have already secured the top spot in Group C.
How to still be eligible for the Super 8 with New Zealand:
Currently, New Zealand needs a number of factors to go their way in order to have a shot at qualifying.
Afghanistan, who have won two games, including one against New Zealand, and have a net run rate of 5.225 to put them in second place in the Group C rankings, will need to somehow lose their final two matches, which New Zealand will have to hope for. This is the hard part since one of those two games will feature the very skilled Afghan team playing against Papua New Guinea. Even if they manage to lose that, New Zealand will still in the running. However, if Afghanistan wins in that match tomorrow morning, New Zealand’s chances are gone. New Zealand is out, even if the game is rained out. Afghanistan will also play the West Indies, which should be a difficult encounter that favors the hosts at the time.
Now for New Zealand’s own games: they need to win both of their remaining games, against PNG and Uganda, by significant margins. Depending on how badly Afghanistan loses both of their games, they will need to win by different margins (assuming they win at all).
