Almost 91,000 fans came to cheer for Team India in their opening Super 8 clash on February 22. At the Narendra Modi Stadium, the defending champions were handed a sobering reality check as South Africa thrashed them by 76 runs. Ravichandran Ashwin called out that India looked underprepared, while South Africa, who were playing their fourth game of the tournament in Ahmedabad, didn’t lack anything.
In the aftermath, batting great Sunil Gavaskar did not mince his words as well, labelling India “overconfident” and questioning the game awareness of Gautam Gambhir’s side.
How South Africa outplayed India
South Africa’s 187/7 was built the hard way. Reduced to 20/3 after early jolts, they could easily have folded. Instead, David Miller and Dewald Brevis stitched together a match-defining 97-run partnership, absorbing pressure before counterattacking smartly. They assessed the slightly sticky surface, picked their moments, and ensured the Proteas never lost control. A late surge from Tristan Stubbs pushed the total beyond par. They took on Varun Chakaravarthy, a sight that rarely happens.
India, chasing for the first time in this World Cup, never found their footing. If Abhishek Sharma broke his run of ducks, Ishan Kishan fell for a nought in the opening over, Tilak Varma nicked off attempting to force the pace, and Abhishek Sharma perished to a clever knuckleball from Marco Jansen as the hosts slumped to 26/3 inside the Powerplay.
The slide continued as Washington Sundar’s promotion backfired, Suryakumar Yadav scratched his way to 18 before falling, and a three-wicket over from Keshav Maharaj left India reeling at 88/8. Shivam Dube’s 42 was a lone act of something fruitful in a total of 111 all out in 18.5 overs, which is India’s third-lowest in T20 World Cups and their heaviest defeat in the tournament’s history.
Gavaskar questions India’s approach
Gavaskar was blunt in his assessment. “Having seen how Brevis and Miller built their partnership, that was the approach needed from the Indian batters,” he said on JioStar. “The Indian batters did not do that. They came out with overconfidence, threw their bat at everything and lost wickets. South Africa clearly outsmarted India and it was a well-deserved win for them.“
He felt India ignored the most obvious lesson of the night. “India did not take notes from South Africa’s innings. They came out and threw their bat at every delivery hoping for a boundary. That is not how you play T20 cricket. You have to learn from the opposition. If they have scored well on a tricky surface like this, you have to get rid of your ego, observe and adjust.”
The early dismissals particularly irked him. “Tilak Varma has been a very street-smart batter. But I was disappointed with his approach in this game. Ishan Kishan lost his wicket in the first over. The required rate was around 9.5 runs per over, not 15. So, Tilak could have given himself more time,” he said. “You don’t always need to score 70 runs in the Powerplay. Even 55-60 runs would have been a good platform. But the reckless approach of the Indian batters led to their downfall in Ahmedabad.“
The defeat snapped India’s 12-match unbeaten streak in T20 World Cups and left them with a worrying Net Run Rate of -3.800 in the Super 8 group. It was also their first loss in a multi-nation T20 tournament since the 2022 semifinal in Adelaide.
South Africa, meanwhile, continued their remarkable run in ICC events, registering their 13th win in 14 T20 World Cup matches since 2024. For India, the challenge is massive now. They next face Zimbabwe, and Gavaskar has already called for Axar Patel’s return to the XI in place of Washington Sundar.
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