India thrashed Zimbabwe by 72 runs to keep their hopes of reaching the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup alive.

Half-centuries from Abhishek Sharma (55) and Hardik Pandya (50no) helped India set a mammoth total of 256-4, before Brian Bennett's unbeaten 97 salvaged some pride for Zimbabwe, who are now eliminated.

India were put into bat, and opener Abhishek finally found his rhythm in this year's tournament, scoring a total of more than 20 for the first time in the competition.

Ishan Kishan (38) and Suryakumar Yadav (33) added some quickfire runs before Pandya's 50 off 23 and Tilak Varma's unbeaten 44 off 16 helped India set the second-largest total in T20 World Cup history.

Bennett hit eight fours and six maximums on his way to 97 off 59 balls, but his team-mates could not stay with him in the middle as the wickets tumbled in Chennai.

Arshdeep Singh was the pick of the India bowlers, finishing with figures of 3-24 as the co-hosts will now face West Indies on Sunday, with the winner qualifying for the last four.

A comprehensive victory #TeamIndia clinch the #INDvZIM clash by  runs courtesy of an all-round effort!

Scorecard  https://t.co/p4GxtxGkBf#T20WorldCup | #MenInBlue pic.twitter.com/Sk1dlTQ4FD

— BCCI (@BCCI) February 26, 2026

Data Debrief: Arshdeep makes India history, Bennett stakes his claim for Zimbabwe

Arshdeep's three wickets took his overall men's T20 World Cup tally to 35, the most of any bowler for India.

Kishan, meanwhile, has hit 12 sixes in the current men's T20 World Cup: only Rohit Sharma (15 in 2024) has hit more among Indian batters in a single edition.

Bennett would have liked to reach his century, but it was a historic knock, nonetheless.

His 97 is the highest individual score by a Zimbabwe player in the men's T20 World Cup, while his six maximums and 68 runs in boundaries were also the most by a Zimbabwe player in a single innings in the competition.