Shastri, Ponting offer advice on India’s playing XI at T20WC

Defending champions India will be looking to bounce back from the 76-run defeat at the hands of South Africa in their first ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 Super Eight match on Sunday.

It was India’s first defeat after 12 successive wins across the last two editions of the T20 World Cup.

Shastri believes the slip-up may just encourage India to reflect and reset going into the business end of the tournament.

“You win 12 matches on the trot, there's bound to be an off day. And I'm glad it has come early. It might just be the shakeup India needed,” Shastri told host Sanjana Ganesan on the latest episode of The ICC Review.

“It might also make them rethink their strategy as to the composition of the side going ahead.

"They would have learned from that last experience that they're not going to take things for granted because in this Super Eight if you lose one more (match), then you're really putting yourself under serious pressure.”

The repeat of the 2024 World Cup final had started well for India, as they reduced South Africa to 20/3.

But David Miller and Dewald Brevis snatched the momentum back and helped the Proteas post 187/7. On a tricky wicket in Ahmedabad, against a bowling unit that used the conditions well, India’s famed batting line-up came undone, and they collapsed to 111 in 18.5 overs.

One of the talking points during the match was the selection of Washington Sundar, ahead of vice-captain Axar Patel. It did not work on Sunday and the Indian think tank will have to solve that particular puzzle quickly if they are to keep their title defence alive.

Ponting thinks India should be focusing on playing their best XI rather than trying to get the matchups right.

“Listening to the commentary, the reason Axar didn’t play (against South Africa) is because of the left handers in the opposition side. But there's still some right handers there. It just comes down to the art of the captain of being able to use Axar at the right time,” Ponting said.

India will next take on Zimbabwe in Chennai on Thursday, before wrapping up the Super Eight stage on Sunday against the West Indies in Kolkata.

“I would be going back to the basics. I'd be just looking at their lineup. Who's our best XI for the conditions in Chennai?” added Ponting, who has led Australia to two ICC Men's Cricket World Cup triumphs.

“If that has Axar Patel in it, great. If it has Kuldeep Yadav in it, that's the other one that I'd be thinking about bringing back because it doesn't matter with him if it's left-hand or right-hand. He can bowl wrong ones and spin the ball away from the left-hand outside edge of both those batters.”

Quality spinners have made an impact at the T20 World Cup, especially in the matches played in India. Keeping in mind the conditions, Shastri is in favour of playing the extra spinner, adding to the variety and angles of attack.

“I think they have to bring him (Axar Patel) back. You need that experience,” he said.

“I would say play both (Patel and Sundar). Give yourself that extra option. Because on a given day, you're bound to have one bowler who's going to have an

off day. Like for example, Varun Chakravarthy on Sunday. He was not at his best and he paid the price for it.

“If Axar Patel is playing, he might be batting at No.8. You have got Hardik Pandya at No.5, you've got Shivam Dube at No.6, you've got Washington Sundar at No.7. Axar can go at No.5 as well.

“Now, if eight batters can't do the job in T20 cricket, then something's wrong, especially with that kind of firepower. Where you're missing out is you're not giving yourself that extra option of a bowler, which I think is important. Rinku Singh might have to miss out. But if he has to come in, he has to come in place of a specialist batter.”

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