After the death of de Sá, the colony council proposed to Cabral the post of Governor of Portuguese India because his name was on the list of applicants for the position in an emergency situation.

The responsibility for preparing a war against the zamorin fell on his shoulders and soon rumours appeared that the Turks were gathering a huge fleet in the Red Sea to attack Portuguese India.

Governor Cabral spent the year making preparations, and only in August 1550 did the information come that the Turks had amassed a large fleet; for unknown reasons they abandoned the idea of going to India.

The raja of neighboring Cochin was very envious of the circumstances and repeatedly tried to seize the territory of Bardela without success, although both sides suffered significant losses in manpower.

At the same time, the rulers of the principalities mainly to the south of Cochin also began to gather their military troops, so that by the beginning of the fighting the zamorin could already have an army of 140,000 men.

[4] Upon learning of the "king of pepper's" death, the zamorin vowed to avenge the Portuguese, collected a large army and moved closer to Cochin.

But Cabral did not have time to attack due to the new viceroy of Portuguese India, Afonso de Noronha (1498–1575), who arrived in Cochin with a fleet in October 1550.

The fighting activity ceased, but the tense situation in the South of Malabar remained for quite some time, which had a negative impact on the pepper supply to Portugal.

Cabral returned to Portugal at the first opportunity because the new ruler of Portuguese India had not offered him a position in his administration, and the captaincy in the Bassein was already lost.