Day two of the World Championship of Legends 2026 at Sharjah served up two very different contests. In the afternoon, South Africa Champions produced the most ruthless display of the tournament so far, hammering West Indies Champions by 97 runs. Under lights, England Champions had to dig far deeper — surviving a late Indian fightback to win by 21 runs.
South Africa Champions vs West Indies Champions: A 97-Run Demolition
Levi and de Villiers Put on a Sharjah Masterclass
There are days when a batting side simply decides the bowlers are irrelevant. This was one of them. South Africa Champions, asked to bat first, finished on 242 for 5 — and for long stretches it felt like the West Indies attack was bowling into a storm.
Richard Levi was the storm's leading edge. His 87 off 39 balls — five fours, eight sixes, strike rate north of 220 — tore the new ball apart and never let the pressure drop. At the other end, AB de Villiers produced one of those innings that remind you why his name still fills grounds: 70 off 39, all timing and audacity. Together they added 104 in just 42 balls for the second wicket, and by the time Levi fell, the damage was done.
Sarel Erwee (23 off 13) and Morne van Wyk (17 not out off 11) kept the tempo screaming at the death, and the 24 extras — 20 of them wides — told their own story of a West Indies attack that had lost its shape. Dave Mohammed's 2 for 29 was the only bowling return worth mentioning.
Gayle Fights Alone as Tahir Spins the Chase Away
Chasing 243 was always going to need something extraordinary, and for a while Chris Gayle threatened to provide it. His 60 off 31 balls — four fours, five sixes — was vintage Gayle, and at 60 for 3 the West Indies still had a pulse. Then Aaron Phangiso trapped him lbw, and the innings flatlined.
Imran Tahir ran through the middle order with 3 for 24, Phangiso added 3 for 49, and Robbie Frylinck's 2 for 22 kept things tight at the other end. Carlos Brathwaite swung his way to 29 off 13, but nobody else reached 15. West Indies were bowled out for 145 in 18.2 overs — 97 runs short, and it could have been worse.
Richard Levi was named Player of the Match, and South Africa's net run rate received the kind of boost that wins tournaments.
Scorecard: South Africa Champions 242/5 (20 ov) beat West Indies Champions 145/10 (18.2 ov) by 97 runs
SA Champions: Levi 87 (39), de Villiers 70 (39), Erwee 23 (13), van Wyk 17* (11); Dave Mohammed 2/29, Bravo 1/30.
WI Champions: Gayle 60 (31), Brathwaite 29 (13); Tahir 3/24, Phangiso 3/49, Frylinck 2/22.
England Champions vs India Champions: 21-Run Win After a Late Scare
Bopara's 83 Anchors England's 192
India won the toss and chose to field, and for four balls it looked like a masterstroke — Dawid Malan gone for 1, England 3 for 1. Then Ravi Bopara took over.
Bopara's 83 off 46 balls was the innings of the evening: five fours, six sixes, and a calm head while wickets fell around him. His 133-run stand with Samit Patel (57 off 44) dragged England from trouble to dominance, and Phil Mustard's 31 off 20 gave the finish the lift it needed. Dhawal Kulkarni (2 for 32) and Abhimanyu Mithun (2 for 27) bowled well for India, but 192 for 4 was a formidable total.
Uthappa's Blitz, Then the Collapse
If England's innings was about one man holding firm, India's chase was about one man exploding — and then imploding. Robin Uthappa took 26 off Toby Roland-Jones' second over, a breathtaking sequence of 6, 4, 6, 0, 4, 6, and raced to 31 off 12 balls. Sharjah was buzzing.
Ryan Sidebottom silenced it in the space of one over. He removed Naman Ojha and then Uthappa himself, lbw, and India went from 33 for 0 to 34 for 2. What followed was a collapse: Stuart Binny fell for a duck, Yusuf Pathan crawled to 4 off 10, Irfan Pathan came and went for 10. At 76 for 5 in the eighth over, the chase looked dead.
Rayudu, Dhawan and Chawla Drag India Back — But Not Far Enough
Cricket, though, has a habit of refusing to follow scripts. Ambati Rayudu (47 off 31) and Rishi Dhawan (29 off 28) stitched the innings back together, and when Rayudu fell at 117 for 6, Piyush Chawla walked in and refused to leave — 34 not out off 22 balls, swinging hard to the end. From 76 for 5, India fought all the way to 171 for 8.
It wasn't enough. England's early strikes had built a cushion too deep to cross, and the 21-run margin flattered neither side — England deserved the win, India deserved credit for the fight.
Scorecard: England Champions 192/4 (20 ov) beat India Champions 171/8 (20 ov) by 21 runs
ENG Champions: Bopara 83 (46), S. Patel 57 (44), Mustard 31 (20); Kulkarni 2/32, Mithun 2/27.
IND Champions: Rayudu 47 (31), Chawla 34* (22), Uthappa 31 (12), Dhawan 29 (28); Sidebottom 2/24, Plunkett 2/25, Roland-Jones 2/57.
What the Double-Header Means for the Tournament
Two days in, the picture is sharpening. South Africa Champions look every bit the tournament favourites — a 97-run win does things to a points table that narrow victories can't. India Champions, winners on day one against Australia, now sit at one win and one loss after being outplayed by England. And England Champions, beaten by India in last season's league stage, have their revenge and their first points of 2026.
The caravan rolls on: Australia Champions meet Pakistan Champions next, before Bangladesh Champions take on England Champions. If day two is anything to go by, Sharjah is in for a month of fireworks.