Ahmedabad, 22 February (HS): South Africa defeated India by 76 runs in a Super Eight match of the 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Saturday. The loss, witnessed by a crowd of 90,954 spectators, marked India’s first defeat in an ICC tournament since the 2023 ODI World Cup final.
For South Africa, Marco Jansen delivered a decisive spell of 4/22, while David Miller scored 63 and Dewald Brevis made 45. After a shaky start at 20/3, Miller and Brevis stitched together a 97-run partnership to take the team to 187/7. In the final over, Tristan Stubbs struck a boundary and two sixes off Hardik Pandya to boost the total.
India’s Jasprit Bumrah (3/15) and Arshdeep Singh (2/28) bowled effectively, but the remaining bowlers were unable to contain South Africa’s middle-order resurgence. In reply, India got off to a poor start and slipped to 51/5. Shivam Dube scored 42 in an attempt to steady the innings, but the team was bowled out for 111 in 18.5 overs.
Keshav Maharaj (3/24) and Corbin Bosch (two wickets) also played key roles in South Africa’s victory. Captain Aiden Markram rotated his bowlers strategically to prevent the Indian batters from settling.
After the match, India captain Suryakumar Yadav said the bowlers had provided a good start but acknowledged that the batting unit did not meet expectations. He noted that losing multiple wickets in the powerplay proved costly.
With the defeat, India’s 12-match winning streak in T20 World Cup history came to an end. To remain in contention for the semifinals, India must now win their remaining matches against Zimbabwe and the West Indies, particularly with their net run rate having dropped to -3.8.
---------------
Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
