India's biggest nightmares in T20I cricket: List of matches lost with overs to spare

Soumyajit Dutta

Marsh & Kuldeep Yadav (Source: AFP Photos)Marsh & Kuldeep Yadav (Source: AFP Photos)

India lost the 2nd T20I against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on October 31. The match wasn't even a close one, and from the onset, India's chances were looking bleak since Hazlewood scripted the Indian batters' collapse.

After managing a skimpy total, Australia made light work of it with almost 7 overs to spare as they won by 4 wickets. This adds India to a recurring list of shame in the game, where they had the biggest defeats in terms of balls to spare. Here's the full list of all defeats.

4) 31 balls remaining vs Australia in 2012

The first clash to start off with is a match between India and Australia in the ICC World T20 2016 Group Stage, where India batted first and managed to score only 140 runs after notable contributions from Irfan Pathan and Suresh Raina. 

Australia, powered by their explosive batting, chased down the target comfortably as Shane Watson smashed 72 off 42 balls and David Warner struck a quickfire 63 off 41 deliveries to seal the win with 31 balls to spare.

3) 33 balls remaining vs New Zealand and Sri Lanka in 2021

India faced New Zealand in the 28th match of the T20 World Cup 2021 on October 31. The match saw India bat first and post a subpar total of 110 on the board. The top order collapsed, with a few stumbles from the middle order as well. 

Notable contributions from Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja helped India cross the 100-run mark. In reply, New Zealand’s Darrell Mitchell and Kane Williamson forged a 72-run partnership to finish the match with 33 balls remaining and 8 wickets in hand.

Another instance when India lost a T20I game by 33 runs was against Sri Lanka during their 2021 tour. Batting first, India managed only 81 runs for 8 wickets. The only notable contribution came from Kuldeep Yadav, who scored 23 runs off 28 balls. Sanju Samson and Shikhar Dhawan were dismissed for ducks. In reply, Sri Lanka’s Wanindu Hasaranga and Dhananjaya de Silva finished the chase with 33 balls to spare and 7 wickets in hand.

2) 40 balls remaining vs Australia in 2025

The second entry in India’s list of shame came on October 31, 2025, when they lost by four wickets as Australia cruised to victory with 40 balls to spare in the second T20I of the ongoing five-match series. Batting first after losing the toss, India suffered early blows as Tilak Varma fell for a duck, and openers Shubman Gill, Sanju Samson, and Suryakumar Yadav were dismissed by the fifth over. 

Abhishek Sharma’s impressive 68 and Harshit Rana’s surprising 35 helped India reach a modest total of 125. However, it wasn’t enough as Australia’s Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head launched a brutal counterattack, guiding the hosts to a comfortable win at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

1) 52 balls remaining vs Australia in 2008

The first entry on the list is the only T20I at Melbourne back in 2008, where Michael Clarke was named Player of the Match for his stellar performance. Batting first, India was embarrassingly bundled out for just 74 runs. Virender Sehwag fell for a duck, while Robin Uthappa, Gautam Gambhir, and Dinesh Karthik all managed only single-digit scores. 

Irfan Pathan was the lone contributor with 26 runs, offering a brief glimmer of hope. In reply, Australia made light work of the chase, losing only Adam Gilchrist for 25 runs. Captain Michael Clarke and Brad Hodge comfortably steered Australia home with 52 balls to spare and nine wickets in hand.