New Delhi (India), February 23 : Legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar criticised India's batting approach following their Super 8 defeat to South Africa in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 and said that the hosts failed to adapt to the conditions despite clear evidence from the opposition's innings.
Gavaskar pointed to the contrasting approaches of Dewald Brevis and David Miller, who rebuilt the Proteas innings after early setbacks.
Gavaskar emphasised that South Africa's batters played straighter and showed awareness of the pitch's conditions, especially against the short ball, whereas India's approach lacked situational assessment.
South Africa snapped India's 12-match unbeaten streak at the ICC Men's T20 World Cup as they handed the defending champions a 76-run defeat in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
"When you look at how Dewald Brevis and David Miller repaired the South African innings, they played shots more in the V. When the bouncers were bowled, they countered them intelligently because they realised that the ball was not coming onto the bat quickly. Having seen how Brevis and Miller built their partnership, that was the approach needed from the Indian batters," Gavaskar said on JioStar.
"But India did not take notes from South Africa's innings. They came out and threw their bat at every delivery, hoping for a boundary. That is not how you play T20 cricket. You have to learn from the opposition. If they have scored well on a tricky surface like this, you have to get rid of your ego, observe and adjust. The Indian batters did not do that. They came out with overconfidence, threw their bat at everything and lost wickets. South Africa clearly outsmarted India, and it was a well-deserved win for them," he added.
Gavaskar stressed that T20 cricket is not merely about power-hitting but about understanding match situations and responding accordingly. He suggested that India needed to mirror South Africa's calculated approach rather than persist with an aggressive template unsuited to the pitch.
India's loss of 76 runs against South Africa has tightened their qualification scenarios for the semi-finals. The Men in Blues will have to win the remaining two games with a good net run rate to keep their hopes of defending the T20 World Cup alive.