Suryakumar Yadav’s lean patch was impossible to ignore. Since the Asia Cup, India’s T20I captain had managed just 190 runs in 14 innings at an average of 17.26 and a strike rate of 124.2.
Unsurprisingly, questions around his form dominated the media interaction in Mumbai on Saturday. SKY admitted the concern, but struck a calm note.
“I know what to work on. I know where things are going wrong,” he said, adding that the upcoming New Zealand series would be a key phase for him to fix those issues.
A day earlier in Ahmedabad, after India wrapped up the South Africa T20I series, Yadav had been even more candid.
“Maybe the only thing we couldn’t quite manage was finding ‘Surya the batter.’ I think he went missing somewhere! But he’ll be back stronger. As a team, I’m really happy. Whenever we were in trouble, someone always put their hand up and pulled us through. As captain, that’s very satisfying.”
Reflecting further, Yadav revealed he had spent the past three months revisiting old footage – clips from his peak – in a bid to rediscover his rhythm. “There’s a small, invisible hurdle,” he said. “But I’m sure it’ll be far away soon.”
When asked about the pressure of playing a home World Cup, Yadav acknowledged it would be both a challenge and a responsibility. He described it as motivation rather than a burden and expressed confidence in the balance and flexibility of the selected squad.
Yet, beneath the optimism, the numbers told a harsher story.
While Shubman Gill paid the price for his lack of impact, SKY survived – despite an even bleaker record.
According to a PTI report, it was leadership, not form, that tipped the scales.
“SKY, by virtue of being the skipper, kept his place despite a horrific one-year run,” the report stated, adding that Gill’s game simply didn’t match the impact of Abhishek Sharma at the top.
The message, however, was clear. Captaincy had bought Suryakumar time – nothing more.
With the T20 World Cup beginning on February 7, and a five-match home series against New Zealand looming in January, the buffer is thin.