TimesofIndia.com in Ahmedabad: India’s first match of the Super Eights provided a harsh reality check as they were soundly beaten by South Africa at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Chasing a target of 188 runs, the famous batting line-up was never able to deliver and succumbed to the pressure of a big match in front of over 90,000 people. The run and chase lacks application, intention and discipline. Whatever may have gone wrong, something went wrong for Suryakumar Yadav & Co and they lost the match by a crushing margin of 76 runs.
Questionable shot selection, lack of partnership and some excellent bowling by South Africa led to the hosts’ downfall, ending their 12-match unbeaten run in the T20I World Cup. For a team that has been dominant since winning the title in the Caribbean in 2024, Sunday’s performance, especially the batting, was nothing short of embarrassing. The team had no trouble scoring huge runs and easily surpassed the huge total, but only managed 57 points midway through the chase and half the team was chilling in the dugout.
There were glaring issues in the group stages too, but the bowlers continued to find ways and got the job done. However, when they were asked to give chase, those thin cracks were revealed. The pressure of the big stage clearly got the better of the batting, with Ishant Kishan, Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma playing some very average knocks. Abhishek breathed a sigh of relief when he scored his first over on the boundary, but he never looked relaxed during the middle over. The southpaw looked low on confidence, as did India’s No. 3 Tilak Varma.
Tilak was closely scrutinized for his poor strike rate and although he received support from the selectors, coaches and team leadership, his performances did not inspire much confidence. India tried to shake things up by moving Washington Sundar up the order, but even that backfired, as did his overall selection ahead of the experienced Axar Patel in this match. The Indian vice-captain was on the bench for the second consecutive game and his absence was felt deeply with both bat and ball.
Shivam Dube’s solitary effort kept the net run-rate loss to a minimum but the writing was clearly on the wall, leaving only simple form before South Africa sealed a comprehensive victory. Marco Jansen & Co. combined to completely dominate the hosts, their clever use of the pitch and conditions helping them make a statement.
bumra and others
Earlier, Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh combined to keep the Proteas below 200 runs. Each game can be divided into three stages. India dominated the powerplay, taking three wickets. South Africa rebuilt under David Miller and Dewald Breivis but India again wrested control in the 16th to 19th over.
In the last four overs, the Aiden Markram-led side scored 23 runs and lost 3 wickets, offsetting the efforts of Miller and Brevis in the middle stages, who scored a total of 97 runs. They also lost the same number of wickets in the powerplay but they had plans in place for the upcoming spin threat. The left-right combination targeted Varun Chakravarthy but never allowed India’s X-factor to settle on a pitch that had little spin.
Conceding 28 runs in his first two games as the world’s top-ranked T20I bowler, Miller looked dangerous in front of the crowd. From the moment he stepped out to bat in the fourth round, the southpaw’s moves were filled with calculated intent. He hit the ball where it was supposed to hit and didn’t retreat after the early wickets. The emergence of the busy Brevis at the other end gave the match a much-needed impetus as the pair put on a comfortable 97-run stand in just 50 deliveries.
A total of 200+ looked easily achievable when they batted, but India did well to claw back the score in the final stages. Bumrah is at his best as a threat in both the power play and death overs. He conceded just eight runs in his last two overs and added one more wicket to his tally, making him the most successful bowler in India’s T20I World Cup history.
Arshdeep kept up the pressure at the other end, scoring just 7 runs in the 18th over, but the 20th over, bowled by Hardik, changed South Africa’s momentum. Tristan Stubbs smashed six runs off the last two deliveries to end the innings at 187/7. T20I cricket is all about grabbing momentum when it’s around you. South Africa did it with the bat in the final game and then the bowlers then defeated India in their first Super Eight match.
Brief score:
South Africa: 187 runs in 20 overs for 7 balls (David Miller 63, Devalde Brevis 45, Tristan Stubbs 44; Jasprit Bumrah 3/15, Arshdeep Singh 2/28).
India: 111 all out in 18.5 overs (Shivam Dube 42; Marco Jansen 4/22, Keshav Maharaj 3/24, Corbin Bosch 2/12).
