T20 World Cup 2026: Tilak Varma’s lean patch continues with another cheap dismissal against South Africa

Published - 22 Feb 2026, 22:32 IST | Updated - 22 Feb 2026, 22:36 IST

India’s No. 3 batter Tilak Varma is enduring one of his toughest campaigns in the T20 World Cup 2026. The left-hander’s struggles continued during the Super Eight clash against South Africa in Group A on February 22 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, where he was dismissed for just one run.

Marco Jansen accounted for Tilak’s wicket, with Quinton de Kock completing a sharp catch behind the stumps. Tilak charged down the track and made room, looking to slap Jansen over mid-off. However, the extra bounce proved decisive as the ball took a thin edge on its way through, allowing De Kock to complete a neat take.

The ongoing tournament has not seen Tilak at his fluent best. His highest score so far has been 31 off 27 balls against the Netherlands. In the opening three games against USA, Namibia, and Pakistan, he managed 25 runs in each outing but failed to convert those starts into substantial contributions. Across five matches, he has scored 107 runs at an average of 21.40, numbers that fall well short of his usual standards.

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His dismissals have reflected a mix of misjudgment and misfortune. Against USA, he miscued a delivery that bounced extra from Shadley van Schalkwyk and was caught at mid-wicket. In the Namibia game, he stepped out to drive a length ball but failed to time it, resulting in a soft dismissal.

Against arch-rivals Pakistan, he missed a slog sweep and was trapped on the back leg by Saim Ayub. In the final group-stage fixture versus the Netherlands, he attempted to go downtown off a full and wide delivery, only for Roelof van der Merwe to move to his right and complete a fine reverse-cupped catch.

Despite this lean patch, Tilak’s overall T20I record remains impressive. In 44 matches for India, he has scored 1289 runs at an average of 46.03. Notably, he has enjoyed considerable success against South Africa, amassing 497 runs in 11 games at an average of 62.12, including two centuries and two half-centuries.