India’s assistant coach has said that the defending T20 World Cup champions will require “two big performances” in order to qualify for the semi-finals after their crash to South Africa on Sunday.
India were red-hot favourites on home soil heading into the T20 World Cup but suffered a crushing 76-run defeat in the Super Eights, as the 80,000 fans at the sprawling Narendra Modi stadium fell silent.
In their first run chase of the tournament, India’s batsmen fell way short against some disciplined South Africa bowling.
India were bowled out for 111 in 18.5 overs chasing South Africa’s 187-7 as their winning run of 12 matches in the T20 World Cup came crashing down.
The size of the loss leaves India with a desperately negative net run-rate (-3.8) and almost certainly needing to win both their remaining Super Eights matches heavily to have any hope of reaching the semi-finals.
Anything else and India will have to bank on permutations of other results.
“So, pretty disappointed with how we have played,” said Ryan ten Doeschate.
“If you aim to win a World Cup, nobody is going to come halfway through and bring it for you,” the assistant coach said.
“We’ve made a real mess of it and now it’s up to this group of blokes to salvage something and it really pains me that we haven’t been in this position but we are and all I hope is that the boys go out there, they put two good performances in.
India are in Super Eights alongside South Africa, the West Indies and Zimbabwe, with top two teams making it to the semi-finals.
The West Indies play Zimbabwe Monday night here in Mumbai for their Super Eights opener.
India take on the giant-killers Zimbabwe, who have already stunned Australia and Sri Lanka, in Chennai on Thursday.
South Africa were in action the same day as they faced the West Indies in Ahmedabad and Aiden Markram’s team would take a firm step towards the last four with another win.
‘Cloak came off’
“Clearly the way the group has gone, you have to get a minimum of four points to go through now and it is going to need two huge ones from us as well as everyone putting in a massive performance,” Ten Doeschate said.
India’s vulnerable batting was laid bare by the in-foam bowling attack led by left-arm seamer Marco Jansen, who finished with 4-22 from 3.5 overs. Keshav Maharaj’s left-arm spin claimed his 3-24.
India’s media ripped into the team on Monday morning.
“The night the cloak came off,” flared a headline in the Indian Express newspaper.
” Sloppy India arrive at point of no return,”Guardian.
India’s ultra-aggressive left-handed opening has not fired with the shaky middle order mopping up.
Ishan Kishan was caught behind off Markram for 0 on Sunday, while the world’s number one T20 batsman at Essendon Worcestershire `s Abhishek Sharma also fell to Jansen for 15 — his only runs at the tournament so far after three ducks.
“It’s definitely not going to panic stations,” said Ten Doeschate, who suggested that there may be talks surrounding India’s batting line-up.
“Those guys (Ahbishek and Ishan) if they can bat for six overs, the score is going to be 70-odd,” Ten Doeschate said.
“So can we somehow get them to rein it in and be a little more intelligent?
“Or we just let them go on the path they’re on?
“Or do we get the right-hander at the top and try to make a move somewhere in between?”
Captain Suryakumar Yadav concurred that India have to engage their brains during the first six-over power play where only two fielders can remain outside the ring.
“You can’t win the game in the power play chasing 180-185 but you might lose it,” he said after his side struggled to 31-3 after six overs that became 43-4 a couple of balls later and then 51-5.
“We lost too many wickets at the power play.
The 2024 champions will have history against them, too. The T20 World Cup has never been retained and it has never been won on home soil.