‘We should have put up a fight’: Indian fans reflect on ‘crushing’ T20 semi-final defeat

An evening that begun with thunderous applause for many fans ended in disappointed silence as India crashed out of the T20 World Cup at the hands of England in a one-sided clash in Adelaide.

Key Points

The semi-final match between India and England was expected to be a tight tussle
Indian cricket fans thronged to Adelaide Oval in huge numbers to support their team only to leave broken hearted
The electric pre-match mood was dampened by India's crushing defeat

A sea of Indian supporters descended on the Adelaide Oval for Thursday night's semi-final with England, bringing tremendous noise and colour to the spectacle.

Fans from both sides were hoping and expecting it would be a tightly fought match.

However, the mood for one set of fans was to flip 180 degrees by the end of the match.

A crowd of more than 40,000 was on hand to see England defeat India by 10 wickets.

Many Indian fans could be seen walking out of the stadium in silence, reflecting on their team's crushing loss.

Raghav Kumar, an Indian fan who travelled all the way from Melbourne to watch the match, said, "I could not believe that the Indian team was not able to secure even one wicket.

"They should have at least put up a fight against England.”

Another dejected fan, Anshula Gupta, said, “We thought India was inching towards victory and that we would clinch the World Cup, but we were shown otherwise today.

"The Indian team needs to work on its openers and also revisit its balling strategy."

Bhavik Mangla (right) joined thousands of Indian cricket fans to watch India face England in the T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final held in Adelaide Credit: Monica Sharma

Many Indian fans who entered the stadium hailing their favourite stars were to leave the stadium early once elimination became inevitable.

On the other hand, England supporters could be seen dancing their way out of the ground.

One such supporter, Craig Drabsch, said, "England played really well and it was a delight to watch them.

Craig Drabsch (left) looked forward to an 'intense match' between India and England though he went to support England at the T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final. Credit: Monica Sharma.

"We were looking forward to an intense match, but ended up being an easy win for England as the batting by Alex Hales was amazing."

For many Indian fans, the pain of defeat will linger.

Bhavik Mangla, a university student who missed his evening examination preparation to attend, was devastated.

I left the match early as I could not stand to see my favourite team lose that easily without even trying their best. England played very well and that is what is expected in the semi-finals.
Bhavik Mangla

Another fan, Aarti Walia, was all prepared to go to Melbourne from Adelaide to watch the final.

“I was so excited that I would watch history in the making with the hope of an India-Pakistan final, but now all plans are shelved. Purchasing match tickets and travel tickets to Melbourne was a waste of money.”

Aarti Walia (centre) attended the T20 World Cup 2022 semi-final match between India and England at the Adelaide Oval with her family. Credit: Supplied/Aarti Walia

Like Aarti, many other fans said they had bought tickets in anticipation of an India-Pakistan final.

However, many are now looking to offload those tickets, saying India's semi-final defeat has taken the shine off their previous spectacular wins.

After the match, while many Indian fans gave credit to England for their winning performance, some said they would now root for Pakistan in the final.

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