Former India captain and selector Kris Srikkanth has slammed the Indian team management’s tactics against South Africa in the 2026 T20 World Cup Super-Eights match on Sunday (February 23). He said it was
‘absolutely ridiculous’ that Gautam Gambhir and Co. demoted Hardik Pandya to number seven in the chase, despite his success batting higher up in the middle-order.
After opting to bat, South Africa were rocked early as Jasprit Bumrah (3/15) and Arshdeep Singh (2/28) reduced them to 20/3 inside four overs. David Miller then steadied the innings, rolling back the years with an aggressive 63 off 35 balls. He found strong support from Dewald Brevis (45 off 29), and the pair stitched together a 97-run fourth-wicket stand off just 51 deliveries to revive the innings. South Africa eventually posted 187/7.
In reply, India faltered from the outset. Aiden Markram opened the bowling with his off-spin and dismissed Ishan Kishan for a four-ball duck. Marco Jansen struck twice in the power play, leaving India at 26/3, with Abhishek Sharma falling for 15. Shivam Dube top-scored with 42 off 37 balls, but India were bowled out for 111 in 18.5 overs. Jansen (4/22), Keshav Maharaj (3/24), and Corbin Bosch (2/12) sealed a commanding 76-run win.
“It was absolutely ridiculous. India were humiliated today on all fronts. It’s what we usually do to opponents, but the roles were reversed today. Hardik Pandya has done well in pressure situations at 5. He should have come in at No.5. Instead, they sent him at 7, which was totally unfair. Hardik Pandya coming in at No.7 was ridiculous decision-making,” Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel.
Srikkanth also slammed several players for their individual performances, including Ishan Kishan and Rinku Singh for their poor shots.
“Ishan Kishan was almost caught at mid-on the previous delivery, yet he is slogging the next ball. Was it necessary to slog the next delivery? Rinku Singh only scores single digits wherever he comes to bat. It’s easy to play in bilateral series compared to ICC events. The batters will now second-guess their approach going forward. Abhishek Sharma already went from striker to non-striker in this match,” he added.
“The Indian batters’ mindsets will become further negative. India’s batting throughout the tournament has not been consistent. It’s just been bailed out by one or two players and even that went for a toss this match. (Shivam) Dube hit some sixes at the end, but it was all empty calories after the game was already over,” Srikkanth said.
India are now in a precarious position, needing to beat the West Indies and Zimbabwe with a big margin to have a chance of reaching the semi-final.
