India’s head coach, Gautam Gambhir, was unhappy after Arshdeep Singh completely lost control of his line during India’s second T20I against South Africa on Thursday, December 11 in Mullanpur. The left-arm pacer was startled after Quinton de Kock hit the opening ball of the 11th over for six, and his attempt to counteract resulted in a string of wides.
He attempted to bowl wide outside off to limit the scoring, but misfired several times, delivering two wides before managing a dot ball. What followed was even more chaotic, as he bowled four consecutive wides, eliciting a heated response from Gambhir in the dugout. Captain Suryakumar Yadav and experienced pacer Jasprit Bumrah were also spotted approaching the bowler to calm him down and guide him.
Gambhir’s excited expressions instantly went popular on social media, even before Arshdeep Singh finished his over.
Arshdeep completed with 13 deliveries, the most by an Indian bowler in a T20I over. He was also the first bowler from a full-member nation to allow seven wides in a single over. Naveen-ul-Haq held the previous record, bowling six wides in an over last year.
No matter the situation, abusing a youngster is never justified. Shame on Gautam Gambhir for his actions towards Arshdeep Singh 😔#INDvsSA #ArshdeepSingh
— Arjun 💫 (@hardiknation) December 11, 2025
It was a rare off day in the field for Arshdeep. He lost his composure, and even the crowd grew restless as they waited for the over to end. Indian captain eventually took him off the attack, with Shivam Dube coming on as his replacement.
India currently lead the five-match T20I series 1-0, having won the opening fixture in Cuttack thanks to Hardik Pandya’s fiery knock and all-round bowling effort, sealing the match by 101 runs. South Africa will look to bounce back after Quinton de Kock’s brilliant 90 off 46 balls, which included five fours and seven sixes.
Reflecting on the overall tour, South Africa dominated the two-match Test series, whitewashing India 2-0 and claiming their first Test series win over India in 25 years. In the ODIs, India came out on top 2-1, powered by Virat Kohli’s exceptional form, with two centuries and a half-century across the three matches. Both teams will now aim to finish strong in the T20I series, hoping to clinch the shorter-format title.
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