India were bowled out for 111 chasing a target of 188 runs and must win the next two matches to progress to the semi-finals.
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Published February 22, 2026
India suffered a crushing 76-run defeat to South Africa in the first cricket match of the Super Eights stage of the T20 World Cup and will need to win their next two matches to have a chance of making it to the semi-finals.
The defending champions were bowled out for 111 in 18.5 overs while chasing a target of 188 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India, on Sunday.
It was the co-hosts’ first loss in the tournament and ended their winning streak at the T20 World Cup, which had lasted since winning the title in 2024, at 12.
South Africa’s bowlers put up a near-perfect performance against a strong Indian batting line-up, assisted by fielders, and upset the pre-tournament favorites.
In this innings, India’s in-form opening batsman Ishan Kishan was defeated on the fourth ball by South African captain Aiden Markram’s off-spin bowling as he tried to counter the spin.
The next one to fall was one-down batter Tilak Verma, who was caught behind the first ball of Marco Jansen’s over.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav and out-of-form star batsman Abhishek Sharma tried to revive the innings, but Sharma fell in the fifth over despite scoring 15 runs off 12 deliveries.
Next batsmen Washington Sundar and Yadav fell for the next two wickets as India failed to form any major partnerships in front of a huge home crowd.
A 35-run partnership between all-rounders Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube briefly boosted India’s run chase, but South Africa’s disciplined bowling and near-perfect fielding meant the home side were regularly dismissed.
When Dube lost 37-42, India’s fate was sealed.
Jansen bowled brilliantly, taking 4 wickets for 22 runs in 3.5 overs, while left-arm spin bowler Keshav Maharaj took 3 wickets for 24 runs in 4 overs.
All of South Africa’s bowlers were economical, with Lungi Ngidi leading the way with just 15 runs conceded in four wicketless overs.
Earlier, David Miller, who was named Man of the Match, had an important innings in which he scored 63 runs off 35 balls, stabilizing South Africa’s innings which was reduced to 20-3 after four overs.
In the first match of the Group 1 Super Eights, Markram won the toss and decided to bat first before forming a 97-run partnership with Dewald Brevis, who scored 45 off 29 balls, and the pair revived the Proteas.
Despite Miller’s dismissal in the 16th over, South Africa managed to post an impressive total of 187-7 thanks to Tristan Stubbs’ 24-ball 44 not out at the end of the innings.
Jasprit Bumrah took 3-15 in four overs.
With this loss, South Africa moved to the top of Group 1 of the Super Eights stage, while India were at the bottom of the table with a net run rate of -3.80.
The defending champions must win their remaining two games to have a chance of advancing to the semi-finals.
West Indies and Zimbabwe are the other two teams in the group and will play each other on Monday.
South Africa will play West Indies on Thursday while India will face Zimbabwe on Friday.
