It is said in cricket that the toss puts half the match in your bag. Especially in T20 International, where the pitch and conditions change rapidly, the role of toss becomes even more important. Although winning the toss is completely considered a game of luck, there have been some captains who have made a unique record by winning the toss every time in the entire series. Such opportunities have been seen very rarely in the history of T20 International cricket.

Mahela Jayawardene – Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka’s legendary batsman Mahela Jayawardene accomplished this special feat during the T20 Canada tournament played in Canada in 2008/09. They won the toss all three times in the three-match series. Not only this, Sri Lanka also won all three matches. This series was memorable both in terms of Mahela’s captaincy and luck.

William Porterfield – Ireland

The second name in this list is that of William Porterfield of Ireland. He won consecutive toss in four matches during the ICC World T20 Qualifier played in UAE in 2009–10. Under his captaincy, Ireland played four matches, winning two and losing two. Despite complete control of the toss, the results remained equal, which shows that winning the toss does not always guarantee victory.

Stuart Broad – England

Former England captain and fast bowler Stuart Broad is also included in this special list. In the T20 series played against Pakistan in UAE in 2011-12, Broad won the toss of all three matches. During this period, England won two matches and lost one. Despite the success in the toss, the series was not completely one-sided.

Mohammad Hafeez – Pakistan

Pakistan’s experienced all-rounder Mohammad Hafeez won the toss of three matches in the T20 series against Australia in 2012. In this series, Pakistan won one match, lost one and one match was tied. This example also shows how important is performance on the field along with the toss.

Faf du Plessis – South Africa

Faf du Plessis, captain of the South African team that went on Sri Lanka tour in 2013, won the toss every time in the three-match T20 series. His team won two matches, while faced defeat in one.

IND vs SA Next Match: The ongoing five-match T20 series between India and South Africa has reached its exciting turn. By registering a spectacular win in the third T20 match played in Dharamshala, India has taken a significant lead of 2-1 in the series. Now both the teams have reached Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh, for the fourth T20, where the match is expected to be very interesting.

When and where will the next India-South Africa match be played?

The fourth T20 match of the series between India and South Africa will be played on Wednesday, 17 December. This match will be held at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. The match will start at 7:00 pm (IST). The special thing is that this match will be played just a day after the IPL 2026 mini auction, due to which the curiosity of the players and fans has increased further.

India eyes series win

India had defeated South Africa with a brilliant all-round performance in Dharamshala. The Indian team would like to maintain this momentum and win the series. At the same time, for South Africa this match will be like ‘do or die’, because defeat will knock them out of the series.

Complete information about live telecast and streaming

The live telecast of India vs South Africa T20 series will be done on Star Sports Network. At the same time, viewers who want to watch the match on mobile or laptop can enjoy live streaming on JioHotstar app and website.

IND vs SA T20I Squad

Indian team

Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Verma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dubey, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakraborty, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar.

South African team

Quinton de Kock (wk), Aiden Markram (captain), Tristan Stubbs, Dewald Brewis, David Miller, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Janssen, Keshav Maharaj, Anrich Nortje, Lutho Sipamala, Lungi Ngidi, Reeza Hendricks, Corbin Bosch, George Linde, Tony De Jorzi, Otniel Baartman, Kwena Mafaka.

Abhishek Sharma has once again proved that he is one of the most dangerous openers in T20 cricket. In the third T20 match against South Africa, he performed a feat which no batsman in the world had been able to do before. In this match played at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala, Abhishek Sharma became the first batsman in the world to hit a six on the first ball of the innings and did this thrice.

Did a unique feat on the first ball

India’s innings started with the ball of Lungi Ngidi. Abhishek Sharma sent the very first ball out of the stands without any hesitation. With this he created history. The special thing is that this happened for the third time in the year 2025 when Abhishek hit a six on the first ball of India’s innings. Before this, he had already achieved this feat in the India-UAE Asia Cup match in Dubai and then in the India-Pakistan Asia Cup Super Four match.

From Rohit to Sanju, included in special club

The first Indian to join this special club was Rohit Sharma, who hit a six on the first ball of the innings against England in 2021. After this, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sanju Samson also achieved this feat, but Abhishek Sharma left everyone behind by doing this thrice.

match winning innings with record

Along with making records, Abhishek Sharma also gave a great start to the team. He played a quick inning of 35 runs in just 18 balls, which included three sixes and three fours. A partnership of 60 runs for the first wicket with Shubman Gill laid the foundation of India’s victory. Batting first, the South African team was limited to 117 runs, which India achieved in just 15.5 overs.

Kohli’s record also on target

Abhishek Sharma’s form in 2025 has been very excellent. So far this year, he has scored 1569 runs in 40 T20 matches. If he scores 46 more runs in the remaining two T20 matches, he will break Virat Kohli’s record of scoring most T20 runs by an Indian batsman in a calendar year.

IND vs SA: The crushing 51-run defeat against South Africa in the second T20I raised questions on both the preparation and mentality of the Indian team. However, the reaction of India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir was more discussed than the match itself. As soon as the match was over, Gambhir came to shake hands with the players. Now his strong style and body language went viral on social media.

Gambhir’s ‘serious’ style goes viral

Gautam Gambhir has always been known for his sharp and strict personality. Team India’s performance in the match held in Moga was very disappointing. The top order broke down early, there was a big issue of line-length in bowling and there were many mistakes in fielding as well. Amidst these mistakes, when Gambhir was shaking hands with the players after the match, irritation was clearly visible on his face. As soon as the video surfaced, it went viral and fans started giving various reactions on social media.

After today’s loss, Gautam Gambhir was looking angry during the handshake with Indian players like Jitesh Sharma and Arshdeep Singh.

Look at the attitude of this man; rather than boosting the confidence of players, he was looking at them angrily pic.twitter.com/0nJTTZ8qfQ

— Tejash (@Tejashyyyyy) December 11, 2025

Arshdeep’s 7 wides and top order failure

The biggest disappointment of this match for India was Arshdeep Singh’s 7 wide balls in a single over. This not only increased the runs but also increased the pressure on the team. Whereas in batting, both Shubman Gill and Suryakumar Yadav flopped for the second consecutive match. Had it not been for Tilak Verma’s inning of 62 runs in 34 balls, the margin of defeat could have been bigger.

Captain Suryakumar’s big statement

In the post-match presentation, Suryakumar Yadav clearly said that the team will have to change its strategy. He admitted that the top order did not fulfill its responsibility and no effort was made to take the match deeper. Surya said that,

• The team cannot rely only on Abhishek Sharma’s fast start
• He and Shubman themselves should have given a better start.
• Conditions were difficult, but the team should have had a plan ‘B’
• Experimented by giving promotion to Akshar Patel but it did not work.

Along with this, he expressed confidence that the team will learn from mistakes and do better in the next match.

In the second T20 against South Africa, Team India had to face a crushing defeat by 51 runs. This defeat has reawakened many old questions. India flopped in every department, from batting to bowling, but the strategy of head coach Gautam Gambhir is being discussed the most. Who ‘experimented’ with the team’s batting order for the second consecutive match. This time Team India had to pay the price in the form of a heavy defeat.

Sending Surya to number 4 created controversy

In the match played in Mullanpur, captain Suryakumar Yadav was once again sent to number 4 instead of his usual position. Akshar Patel was sent to bat before him, which spread surprise among the former cricketers. Surya was out after scoring 5 runs in just 4 balls and the team could not recover from the difficult situation it faced in the beginning.

Robin Uthappa raised questions on Gambhir’s thinking

Former Indian batsman Robin Uthappa said after the match that while chasing a big target, the team should send its ‘best batsmen’ up. Uthappa said, “Gambhir had said in the pre-series press conference that only the opening is fixed and all the other batsmen are flexible. However, in a big target, you cannot send your top batsmen down. If Akshar was sent as a pinch-hitter, he should have done power hitting, but neither that plan nor his role was clearly visible.” He said that after the fall of wickets in the initial overs, the team needs stability, not more experiments.

Dale Steyn’s sharp statement

South Africa’s legendary fast bowler Dale Steyn also called Gambhir’s planning a ‘big mistake’. Steyn said, “Surya is your best T20 batsman. Sending him down is not trial-and-error, it is a simple mistake. If a left-right combination had to be made then it was fine, but here two left-handers were sent up even after the right-hander was out. It was completely incomprehensible.”

Uthappa gave advice

Uthappa clearly said that Team India will have to fix the positions of the top-3 batsmen, whether the team bats first or chases. He said, “Flexibility will come after the powerplay, not before. Had Surya been sent one-down, he would have had 60 balls. By sending him at number 4, the team has put itself in trouble. Such continuous changes can harm India in a big tournament in the future.”

The T20 form of India’s young batsman Shubman Gill is constantly under question. Getting out on the first ball in the second T20 against South Africa has further increased his difficulty. Gill, who returned to the T20 team after a long time, was also given the responsibility of vice-captain, but due to not scoring runs, the pressure is now clearly visible. Former cricketer Irfan Pathan has also expressed concern about his declining form.

Irfan Pathan raised questions

Before the Asia Cup 2025, Gill made a strong comeback after being out of the T20 team for more than a year. However, since then he has been able to score only 263 runs in 14 matches. During this period his average also remained around 24. Not only this, his biggest score is also only 47 runs.

Seeing his declining form, former Team India all-rounder Irfan Pathan clearly said that Gill’s form is a “big concern” before the upcoming T20 World Cup. Irfan wrote on social media, “Shubman Gill’s form is a matter of concern before the T20 World Cup. Hopefully he will get into rhythm soon, otherwise Team India may be in trouble.”

Sanju Samson was thrown out and got the responsibility

Gill’s return brought about a big change in the team’s combination. To make room for Gill, Sanju Samson, who was opening well, was sent down and later dropped from the playing eleven. The team management expressed confidence in Gill, but now this decision may prove costly for India. The opening pair of Abhishek Sharma and Samson was doing well earlier, hence Gill getting continuous opportunities has now become a topic of discussion.

Anchor role vs attacking approach

It is also clear that Gill cannot bat “smoky” like Abhishek Sharma does. India’s new T20 philosophy is completely based on fearless attack, where big shots are expected in every over. Gill can play the role of anchor, which Kohli used to do earlier. However, due to the team now having batting till number 8, the importance of this role has reduced.

Less time in T20 World Cup

India has to play a total of 10 matches before the T20 World Cup 2026. In such a situation, the team has less time to try the players and find the right combination. Gill’s poor form is becoming a big challenge for the team’s strategy.

IND vs SA 2nd T20I: Team India, which took the lead by winning the first T20 against South Africa, looked completely scattered in the second match. India lost by 51 runs in the match played in Mullanpur, New Chandigarh and the series is now tied at 1-1. After this defeat, Team India is being heavily criticized on social media. After all, due to what reasons did the match get lost despite India’s victory being easy? Let us understand in detail.

Very poor bowling by Arshdeep Singh

This match of left arm fast bowler Arshdeep Singh was completely forgettable. He gave away 54 runs in four overs and did not take a single wicket. In this match he bowled with an economy of 13.50. Not only this, Arshdeep bowled 7 wide balls in just one over! Arshdeep made the shameful record of T20 International by bowling 13 balls in one over. There were a total of 16 wide balls in India’s innings, which yielded 22 extra runs. Giving so many extra runs in such a high-scoring match directly became the reason for the defeat. The bowlers gave away 123 runs in the last 10 overs.

The opening pair disappointed again

There were a lot of expectations from the opening pair of Abhishek Sharma and Shubhman Gill, but they were disappointed in both the matches. Gill could not even open his account and walked in the very first ball. Abhishek Sharma also got out after scoring 17 runs. Bad starts in two consecutive matches put huge pressure on the team. When the target is so big, early dismissal of openers makes run chase almost impossible. The Indian top order failed due to which the burden on the middle order increased.

Captain Suryakumar’s bad innings

Surya’s move had worked in the first match, but questions were raised on his strategy in the second match. Bowling change, field setting, death overs planning, the team was seen faltering at many places. As captain, when the team was in trouble, Surya himself was out after scoring only 5 runs. His criticism has intensified after he flopped in two consecutive matches.

The failure of the bowlers was also important

Along with Arshdeep, Jasprit Bumrah also remained ineffective. He gave away 45 runs in four overs and did not get a single wicket. The special thing is that four sixes were hit on his balls, which is a record in itself. Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja also failed to stop the South African batsmen.

IND vs SA 2nd T20I: In the second T20 played in Mullanpur, Team India had to face defeat by 51 runs. Captain Suryakumar Yadav appeared most disappointed with this defeat. South Africa made a mountain-like score of 213 runs and in reply, the Indian team collapsed for 162 runs. After the match, Surya spoke openly about the team’s mistakes and especially expressed his displeasure over the failure of the top order.

The decision to bowl first proved costly

Suryakumar Yadav admitted that bowling first after winning the toss proved to be a big mistake. He said, “I think we should have batted first. The wicket was good for batting in the initial overs. While bowling, we did not pick the right length and had to suffer the loss.” South Africa scored fast runs in the powerplay and the Indian bowlers remained under constant pressure.

Dew also spoiled the plan

Due to the presence of dew in Mullanpur, it was expected that batting would be easier in the second innings, but Team India could not take advantage of it. To this Surya said, “There was a little dew, but our plan was not working. We should have changed the plan, but we could not do so.” He said that this defeat is a lesson for the team and they will improve from it in future.

Captain’s anger on top order

India’s top order batting was a complete flop in this match. Both Suryakumar Yadav and Shubman Gill could not give a strong start to the team. Especially Gill was out on the very first ball. On this, Surya clearly said, “I and Shubman should have given a good start. One cannot expect from Abhishek Sharma every time. Shubman was also out early on the first ball. After that, I should have played a long innings and managed the team.” The captain admitted that his and Gill’s failure was a major reason for the team’s defeat.

Praise for Akshar Patel, but…

Surya appreciated the efforts of Akshar Patel, but said that the efforts of the lower order do not work when the top order responds. He further said, “Akshar batted well, but we should have set the innings in the beginning itself. Only then it becomes easy to chase.”

Big changes in the next match?

This reaction of Surya after the defeat clearly shows that there may be a change in the team’s strategy. The next match will be an important comeback opportunity for India and the captain will now be eyeing a strong comeback.

IND vs SA 2nd T20I Live Streaming: The way India won by 101 runs by bowling out South Africa for just 74 runs in the first T20 played in Cuttack, has completely changed the course of the series. Now all eyes are on the second T20 to be held on Thursday, where both the teams will face each other at the Maharaja Yadvendra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, Chandigarh. India would like to take a 2-0 lead in the series by winning here, while Aiden Markram’s team would like to make a comeback at any cost.

India’s preparations

The composition of the Indian team looks balanced at the moment. Abhishek Sharma’s aggressive start and the sharpness of the bowlers have increased the confidence of the team. However, the form of captain Suryakumar Yadav and vice-captain Shubhman Gill is a matter of concern. Both were out early in the first match, so this time a big innings will be expected from them. In bowling, India’s spin pair, Varun Chakraborty and Axar Patel kept Africa under pressure. Jasprit Bumrah’s rhythm and Arshdeep Singh’s swing are also big strengths of the team.

South Africa’s troubles

South Africa’s batting had completely faltered in the first match. The team is more worried about its batsmen than the bowling attack. Players like Markram, Miller and Brewis will try to play responsibly this time. No major changes are expected from the team, but the possibility of change in the batting order cannot be ruled out.

Head-to-head record (T20)

Total matches – 32

India won – 19

South Africa won – 12

to no avail – 1

When and where can you watch the live match?

Match date: Thursday, December 11

Toss: 6:30 pm

Match starts: 7:00 pm

place: Mullanpur, Chandigarh

TV Telecast: Star Sports Network

Live Streaming: JioCinema/Hotstar app and website

Probable playing 11

India: Abhishek Sharma, Shubhman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav (C), Tilak Verma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dubey, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakraborty, Arshdeep Singh.

South Africa: Quinton de Kock (WK), Aiden Markram (C), David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Dewald Brewis, Donovan Ferreira, George Linde, Marco Jansson, Corbin Bosch, Enrique Norkhia, Kwena Mafaka.

IND vs SA Match Time: The teams of India and South Africa are ready for the five-match T20 series starting today. The first T20I to be held at Barabati Stadium, Cuttack is very important for both the teams. Actually, T20 World Cup is near and this series will play a big role in deciding the playing combination. In such a situation, let us know when, what time and where today’s first match will be played. Where can you watch live streaming of this match.

When and where is the match?

1st T20I: 9 December, Tuesday

place: Barabati Stadium, Cuttack

Toss: 6:30 pm

Match starts: 7:00 pm

Where to watch live?

TV: star sports network

Online: JioHotstar app and website

India’s focus: winning streak and right combination

After losing the Test series 0-2, Team India made a strong comeback and won the ODI series 2-1. Now everyone’s eyes are on their most favorite format T20, where India is the current world champion and number-1 team. Abhishek Sharma’s explosive start, Hardik Pandya’s return and the presence of Jasprit Bumrah-Varun Chakraborty make India stronger. Shubman Gill has also joined the team after getting fit and will provide stability to the top order. Jitesh Sharma is expected to get a chance ahead of Sanju Samson in the wicketkeeper slot.

South Africa is also ready

Despite losing the ODI series, South Africa showed its strength on many occasions and this team is considered more dangerous in T20 cricket. The return of Quinton de Kock along with captain Aiden Markram gives great strength to the top order. Power hitters like David Miller, Tristan Stubbs and Dewald Brewis are present in the middle order. All-rounders like Marco Johnson, George Linde and Donovan Ferreira provide balance to the team. In bowling, Lungi Ngidi and Anrich Nortje can shake any batting line-up.

Indian team

Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubhman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Verma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dubey, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakraborty, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar.

South African team

Aiden Markram (captain), Dewald Brewis, Tony de Jorzi, Reeza Hendricks, David Miller, George Linde, Corbin Bosch, Marco Yanson, Quinton de Kock (wk), Donovan Ferreira (wk), Tristan Stubbs, Otneil Bartman, Keshav Maharaj, Kwena Mafaka, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje.