India's legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar was left disappointed after Suryakumar Yadav-led side's 76-run loss to South Africa in their first T20 World Cup 2026 Super 9 encounter. Now, even two wins from two games may not guarantee them a spot in the semifinals. India face an in-form Zimbabwe in their next clash on February 26 at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai. Gavaskar has suggested one change in the lineup for the must-win encounter. He wants Axar Patel to be brought back into the side in place of Washington Sundar.
“I would look at bringing Axar Patel back into the playing XI, keeping in mind the lack of too many left-handed batters in Zimbabwe’s line-up. You could possibly bring him in place of Arshdeep Singh. But Arshdeep bowled so well against South Africa and you wouldn’t want to change somebody who looked in such good rhythm. So, maybe they might not make a change and go with the same team. But I feel Washington Sundar will be the one to miss out. He is not being used properly. Against South Africa, he bowled just two overs and did nothing with the bat. Against Netherlands, he bowled four overs but took no wickets. I think the time has run out for Washington Sundar. Axar Patel will surely replace him,” Gavaskar said on Star Sports.
Gavaskar unhappy with Tilak’s approach
Gavaskar also criticised Tilak Varma’s batting approach. Walking in to bat in the first over after Ishan Kishan departed for a four-ball duck, Varma went down the track to Marco Jansen and ended up nicking one to wicketkeeper-batter Quinton de Kock. Gavaskar pointed out that the required run rate was not getting out of the hand and Tilak should’ve been himself more time considering Abhishek Sharma was not among runs in the previous three encounters. He went on to say that there was no need for an extraordinarily fiery display in powerplay overs but a measured approach.
“Tilak Varma has been a very street-smart batter. But I was disappointed with his approach in this game. Ishan Kishan lost his wicket in the first over. The required rate was around 9.5 runs per over, not 15. So, Tilak could have given himself more time. At the other end, Abhishek Sharma had back-to-back ducks. So, the responsibility was on Tilak to stick around, build a partnership, and get past the first six overs, but he failed to do that. You don't always need to score 70 runs in the Powerplay. Even 55-60 runs would have been a good platform. But the reckless approach of the Indian batters led to their downfall in Ahmedabad,” Gavaskar explained.
Samson for Tilak?
Before the game, Varma’s strike rate had come under the scanner. Now, there have been calls to include Sanju Samson at no.3 considering India’s issues against right-arm off-spinners. The coaching staff including Ryan ten Doeschate and Sitanshu Kotak have not ruled out making changes to the lineup either after a horror show in Ahmedabad.