The cricket world did not like India’s massive 76-run defeat to South Africa in the Super 8 match of the T20 World Cup 2026 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Now former Indian captain Kris Srikkanth has openly targeted Tilak Verma.
India’s 76-run defeat sparks outrage
India were already under pressure after Ishan Kishan was out for duck while chasing the target of 188 runs in the Super 8 match of T20 World Cup 2026. Tilak Verma came to bat in a tense situation. But he made a mistake on his very second ball while trying to play a big aggressive shot against tall fast bowler Marco Johnson.
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The risky shot backfired. He was out for just one run and India’s score was 5/2. His wicket badly hurt the Men in Blue, as their batting never recovered from that point. Ultimately, the defending champions were bowled out for just 111 runs and the match quickly slipped away.
Kris Srikkanth questions Tilak Verma’s place
Srikanth could not hide his anger after India’s crushing defeat. He questioned Tilak Verma’s shot selection and even doubted his place in the playing eleven. The former chief selector said that if Sanju Samson gets a chance in Chennai, then Tilak can be dropped from the next match.
“If Sanju Samson has to come in the 11, there is no place for Tilak Verma. Many people are questioning Tilak’s place in the team. There is a good chance that he will be dropped from the 11 for the shot he played today. It was a terrible shot, and he does not deserve to be at the crease after playing that kind of shot,” Kris Srikkanth said in a video posted on his YouTube channel.
Tilak Verma’s overall performance in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026 has not been impressive. The 23-year-old player has scored 107 runs in five matches at an average of 21.40 and a strike rate of 118.88.
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India misses Virat Kohli!!
Srikanth also said that India is clearly missing a big-match player like Virat Kohli. Kohli retired from T20Is after the 2024 World Cup win and since then, India have struggled in chasing pressure. In the past, whenever India chased big targets in the World Cup, Kohli would stand strong and finish the game.
He said, “Kohli was the player of the match in our top three chases in the T20 World Cup. Without a chase master like Virat Kohli, there is clearly a big void. India will struggle to chase big targets without him. All teams will only bat first and force India to chase the target to move ahead.”
Abhishek Nair criticizes Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan for poor shot selection
Earlier, former Indian batting coach Abhishek Nair had criticized Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan for poor shot selection against South Africa in the Super 8 clash of the tournament.
“It’s going to be a very uncomfortable discussion between Ishan Kishan and Abhishek as to who will take the strike because suddenly, they have given the baton of zero to Ishan Kishan, who was in excellent form. But it is a problem for India,” Geostar quoted Nair as saying.