West Indies head coach Darren Sammy has issued a public warning to the Indian national cricket team ahead of the 2026 T20 World Cup Super 8 match at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday, March 1.

Daren Sammy praises Shimron Hetmyer’s performance in T20 World Cup 2026

Darren Sammy says West Indies are fully prepared for the Super 8 series against India at the Eden Gardens. The head coach was also satisfied with Shimron Heitmeier’s outstanding performance.

The explosive batsman has so far amassed 221 runs at an average of 44.20 and a strike rate of 182.64 in six matches in the ongoing 2026 T20 World Cup.

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Darren Sammy said at the pre-match press conference, “His mentality allowed him to run well. This was the most relaxed he has ever been. He enjoyed the game and his batting sent a lot of positive messages to the team.”

Special plan for Varun Chakravarthy

A big challenge will be India’s mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy, but Sammy said West Indies have clear plans for each bowler. He added, “We have a plan for each bowler. We want to play a complete game. It’s a battle of who executes. I hope it will be an exciting game.”

Talking about the Eden Gardens, the West Indies coach admitted that the early overs are very important and his team will have to quickly understand how the wickets are doing and adjust their game to take control of the match against the defending champions.

Darren Sammy issues strong warning to India ahead of Super 8 clash

Darren Sammy pointed out: “The first few overs are going to be very important. We have to assess the wickets very quickly. All my soldiers are ready for tomorrow’s battle. The message is clear – keep everything in Ahmedabad and just focus on what we need to do against the Indian team.”

Furthermore, the two-time T20 World Cup-winning former captain reminded everyone of West Indies’ past record in India and ordered his team to forget the embarrassing defeat against South Africa and focus on this Super 8 match.

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The West Indies coach said: “I loved coming to Kolkata. A great team from West Indies that won in India. They left a mark for posterity. We have to go to India tomorrow. I use my previous experience here to understand how good the Eden Gardens can be for us. Hopefully that will transfer to the performance.”

Darren Sammy concedes South Africa defeat as West Indies target semi-final spot

Sammy admitted that West Indies’ bowling performance against South Africa was average but they had performed well against other teams, taking nearly 48 wickets in the previous matches. Now, he wants to go all out against India and execute well.

He concluded by saying, “Except South Africa, we have performed well in most of the games. In the 50 games before this, we had about 48 wickets. The game against South Africa was a heavy defeat and we are ready to respond to it. Everyone will perform at full strength tomorrow.”

Notably, West Indies finished the 2026 T20 World Cup group stage unbeaten, followed by a record-breaking win over Zimbabwe before suffering a humiliating loss to South Africa in the Super Eights. If they beat India, they will qualify for the semi-finals of the mega tournament.