IND vs SA: South Africa ends India’s winning streak
IND vs SA: The mood shifted fast at the Narendra Modi Stadium as South Africa snapped India’s winning streak. They secured a dominant win in the Super 8 stage of the T20 World Cup 2026. India chased a tough target of 188, but the batting order fell apart under constant pressure from the Proteas’ pace attack. India eventually lost by 80-runs.
1. Strategic Lapses on the Field
The team management messed up a key call with a confusing decision about the batting order in the India vs South Africa game. This was especially clear in where they put Washington Sundar and how they used Axar Patel. Axar is known for staying calm in big games. Even so, the management kept him out of the playing XI and opted for Sundar, who did not even bowl enough overs in the IND vs SA game.
On top of that, Abhishek Sharma’s rough patch at the top of the order finally hit a breaking point. He walked back to the dugout for his fourth failure of the tournament. The young opener couldn’t adjust his aggressive batting style to the pitch in Ahmedabad, which gripped on slower deliveries. He got out for another low score in the IND vs SA game and left the middle order in a tough spot way too early.
2. Inconsistent Batting Temperament
Past the opening spot, the veteran anchors looked hesitant. They lacked spark during the middle overs against the South African spinners. Suryakumar Yadav and Washington Sundar played it way too safe. This let the required run rate climb until it was out of reach. Suryakumar has saved the team before, but this time he didn’t take any chances against Keshav Maharaj. This let the visitors take total control of the game.
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3. Death Bowling Concerns
Jasprit Bumrah was the lone bright spot with figures of 3/15. However, the other bowlers couldn’t find a way to stop David Miller and Tristan Stubbs during the last four overs of the first innings. These bowlers gave away more than 50 runs at the end. That turned a decent score into a massive one in the IND vs SA game. Their struggle to hit yorkers meant South Africa went into the break with all the momentum.
