South Africa defeated Afghanistan in the 13th match of the T20 World Cup 2026 here on Wednesday (February 11) at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. It was a tight affair, two super overs had to be played to get the result.
Opting to bat first, South Africa put up a fighting total of 187/6 in their 20 overs riding on fifties from Ryan Rickelton (61) and Quinton de Kock (59). Azmatullah Omarzai (3/41) and Rashid Khan (2/28) were the wicket takers for Afghanistan with the ball.
Opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz then scored an excellent 84 (42) to give his side a good start in the chase. However, the rest of the batting line-up didn’t support him as Afghanistan could manage 187 for all out in 19.4 overs. South Africa then beat their Asian rivals in two additional Super Overs to claim a memorable triumph.
Here are some highlights of the top memes about the contest on X:
rollercoaster 😭 we’ve lived a whole day and it’s only 10:18am. #T20WorldCup pic.twitter.com/rj5w3mgNhi
— Eems (@NaeemahBenjamin) February 11, 2026Gurbaz, Rashid Khan and Jonathan Trott with Fazalhaq Farooqi after the match#SAvsAFG pic.twitter.com/fe8ZT7BxLP
— Gagan🇮🇳 (@1no_aalsi_) February 11, 2026How watching this AFG vs SA felt like pic.twitter.com/QOj5Iqlgjj
— AdityaRRaj (@RR_for_LIFE) February 11, 2026Her – He must be thinking about other girls
Him – Nabi ki jagah Gurbaz se open karwana tha pic.twitter.com/nudCh7qq0l
— Sagar (@sagarcasm) February 11, 2026group of death nearly killed us all. pic.twitter.com/xok6FXYZUA
— Eems (@NaeemahBenjamin) February 11, 2026Super over inside the super over. Looks like they've hired the IPL script writer for this World Cup pic.twitter.com/YSqXn6H6lA
— Heisenberg ☢ (@internetumpire) February 11, 2026Afghanistan in blue jersey actually thought they could defeat a team in yellow jersey at Ahmedabad 💀 pic.twitter.com/yVFN1YLWbR
— Dinda Academy (@academy_dinda) February 11, 2026South Africa match summary pic.twitter.com/5OE08B81uW
— Tingus Pingis (@bent_copper) February 11, 2026TWO MINUTES OF SILENCE TO EVERYONE WHO MISSED TODAY’S GAME!! pic.twitter.com/FiSxseOt69
— Dinda Academy (@academy_dinda) February 11, 2026Afghanistan vs South Africa match highlights 🫡 pic.twitter.com/fnSclGT5US
— Ctrl C Ctrl Memes (@Ctrlmemes_) February 11, 2026“Unlucky to be part of losing team” – Rashid Khan after Afghanistan’s loss vs South Africa in 2026 T20 World Cup match
At the post-match presentation, Afghanistan captain Rashid Khan praised his teammates’ performances and believed they were unlucky to lose. Khan said:
“Boys did an amazing job, especially with the way they started with the bat, 100 runs in 10 overs, 1 wickets down and then to restrict them under 190 was a big effort from everyone. So so unlucky to be part of losing team. We gave everything on the ground but it is just a matter of the result not going our way. This wicket is good, played a lot in IPL on this wicket, average score here is around 190-195.”
He added:
“Discussion with the team was yes they had a good start but try to restrict them in last 10 overs under 200, unlucky to finish on the losing side. Amazing innings, that’s what he’s famous for. In the last couple of overs in the powerplay where we lost quick wickets put him on the back foot. In the last Super Over, one ball 5 runs needed could have gone anywhere. Could’ve been smarter. One dive on the last ball could’ve finished it.”
