All eyes will be on the under-fire Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav and opener Shubman Gill as Team India aims to seal the five-match T20I series against South Africa with a victory in the fourth match at Lucknow's Ekana Stadium on Wednesday, December 17. The hosts currently lead the series 2-1.
Captain's Conundrum: Suryakumar's Search for Runs
The Indian skipper's prolonged lean patch has become a significant concern for the team management. The third T20I in Dharamsala presented a perfect opportunity for Suryakumar to find his rhythm during a modest chase of 118 runs. However, the flamboyant batter, once the world's top-ranked T20I player, fell to his trademark pick-up shot, highlighting his ongoing struggles to translate net practice into match performance.
Despite the visible lack of fluency, Suryakumar remains defiant about his form. "I've been batting beautifully in the nets. I'm trying everything that's in my control. I'm not out of form, but definitely out of runs," he stated after India's win on Sunday.
The numbers, however, tell a worrying story. The captain is averaging under 15 in T20Is this season and has not scored a half-century in the entire calendar year of 2025—his longest such drought. With the T20 World Cup 2026 less than two months away, the defending champions desperately need their premier match-winner to rediscover his Midas touch.
Gill's T20I Teething Troubles Continue
Shubman Gill's promotion to the top of the order has inadvertently disrupted a settled Indian batting lineup. His inclusion led to the demotion and subsequent dropping of Sanju Samson, who had forged a promising opening partnership with Abhishek Sharma earlier in the series.
While Gill has been a prolific run-scorer in Test and ODI cricket, his T20I returns have lacked the same authority. His scratchy, run-a-ball 28 in the low-scoring Dharamsala chase did little to inspire confidence. With just seven matches left before the World Cup, the talented right-hander is running out of time to cement his place in the shortest format.
Team Changes and South Africa's Quest for Consistency
India have made one forced change to their squad, with Shahbaz Ahmed replacing the ill Axar Patel. This could allow wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav a longer run in the playing XI. The availability of pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah, who missed the last game for personal reasons, remains uncertain. In his absence, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana impressed in Dharamsala.
For South Africa, the series is a battle for survival. After a commanding win in the first game, the Proteas have suffered two heavy defeats. Their form in T20Is has been alarmingly inconsistent since losing the World Cup final in June last year, having lost 18 of their last 28 matches.
Still experimenting with their combination, the South African team management's rotation policy has come at the cost of results. As the T20 World Cup opener on February 9 approaches, they have only five more matches—two against India and three versus West Indies—to finalize their core group.
Ahead of the match, South African pacer Anrich Nortje expressed his joy at returning to international cricket and remained focused on daily improvement. In a light-hearted moment, he was informed about his purchase by the Lucknow Super Giants at the recent IPL 2026 auction, to which he reacted with pleasant surprise.
Squads for the 4th T20I:
India: Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma, NT Tilak Verma, Shahbaz Ahmed, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Varun Chakravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Sanju Samson (wk), Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar.
South Africa: Aiden Markram (captain), Quinton de Kock, Reeza Hendricks, Dewald Brevis, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, Donovan Ferreira, Marco Jansen, Lutho Sipamla, Ottniel Baartman, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj, George Linde.
