Proteas thump hosts and champions India at T20 World Cup

At 20/3 at the end of the fourth over, a South African win against co-hosts India in Sunday’s Super Eight clash in Ahmedabad looked unlikely.

But the composure, which Shukri Conrad highlighted last Friday, came to the fore, first with the bat, and then with the ball as the Proteas produced one of their most precise bowling performances in this format.

A victory margin of 76 runs is convincing against any side, let alone a team ranked No 1 in the world. In the process the South Africans snapped India’s 12-match winning streak in T20 World Cup matches, a record that encompassed their victory in the last tournament two years ago.

But that Indian team is very different from the current one in terms of two significant personalities. Rohit Sharma, who captained the side to victory in 2024 is no longer part of the team as is Virat Kohli, who was named player of the match in the final in Barbados. They would have brought the kind of composure and clear thinking India needed on Sunday night, but which the Proteas possess.

The loss of three wickets in a power play is often fatal, but a cool-headed 97-run partnership between David Miller and Dewald Brevis turned the momentum of the innings and ultimately the match with South Africa reaching 187/7.

“You don’t want to go into your shell,” said Miller, named player of the match for his beautifully-constructed 63 off 35 balls. “The fielders were still all in for the power play, so we felt we could hit over the inner ring.”

The pair grabbed the initiative quickly, scoring 21 runs off the last two overs with the fielding restrictions in place and then set about taking down the Indian spinners. Washington Sundar and the format’s no.1 ranked bowler Varun Chakravarthy, conceded 64 runs in the six overs they bowled, with the South Africans striking nine boundaries.

Brevis followed Miller’s lead and played with care, but never lost sight of his natural flair, hitting a trio of fours and three sixes, until he was dismissed for 45, misjudging a slower ball from Shivam Dube.

The lack of impact by the spinners, left the Indians somewhat bemused, with their captain Suryakuma Yadav not able to call on Jasprit Bumrah, who was magnificent in the power play until very late in the innings.

Miller’s dismissal in Chakravarthy’s last over, seemed like it would be a crucial turning point. Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh returned and each claimed a wicket, while conceding 15 runs in the three overs they shared at the death.

But Tristan Stubbs, who had played carefully until the final over, then scored 20 runs including bashing Pandya for two sixes to give the Proteas a defendable total. He made an unbeaten 44.

South Africa’s bowling performance was one of the highest class. The plans were meticulous and the execution pinpoint.

It started with Markram opening the bowling and dismissing Ishan Kishan in the first over and continued with Marco Jansen claiming the wickets of Tilkat Varma and Abishek Sharma to leave India at 26/3 in the fifth over.

Unlike South Africa, however, they couldn’t forge a partnership, as the Proteas, making excellent use of the slower ball while maintaining disciplined lines, frustrated the powerhouse home batting unit. Lungi Ngidi may not have matched Bumrah in the wickets column, but he was equally as deceptive in conceding 15 runs in four overs, delivering a masterclass in seam bowling in the format.

The pressure he built allowed Jansen to claim 4/22 and Keshav Maharaj to take three wickets, as South Africa rounded off a resounding performance in front of nearly 90,000 people at Narendra Modi Stadium.

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