AHMEDABAD — Google CEO Sundar Pichai was among the high-profile attendees at the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Super Eights match between India and South Africa at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday evening.
Pichai, who heads Google and its parent company Alphabet, was seen in the stands alongside ICC Chair Jay Shah during one of the marquee fixtures of the tournament, a rematch of the 2024 T20 World Cup final. He also took part in the pre-match ceremony, carrying the T20 World Cup trophy onto the field with former India captain Sunil Gavaskar.
His presence came amid Google’s role as an official partner of the ongoing tournament, highlighting the expanding relationship between global technology companies and international cricket.
Born in Madurai, Pichai later joined former India all-rounder Ravi Shastri during the mid-innings broadcast and spoke about his lifelong connection to the sport and Gavaskar’s influence on his early years as a cricket fan.
“Sunny (Gavaskar) was a big idol for me. I used to have the Sportstar poster on my wall. I have followed it from really young days. I used to listen to it (commentary) on the radio for the games in the West Indies with my granddad, granduncle, and so on. I have always been into the game,” Pichai said.
Other prominent figures in attendance included ICC CEO Sanjog Gupta, former India captain MS Dhoni and his wife Sakshi, and Bollywood choreographer-director Farah Khan. The official attendance for the match was listed at 90,954.
On the field, South Africa posted 187 for 7 after opting to bat first, led by David Miller’s 63, Dewald Brevis’ 45, and an unbeaten 44 from Tristan Stubbs. For India, Jasprit Bumrah returned figures of 3 for 15, while Arshdeep Singh claimed 2 for 28. (Source: IANS)
