India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav has not given up hope of adding to his only Test cap, insisting he is trying to play as much domestic
cricket as possible in a bid to return to the Test side.
Suryakumar played his first and only Test against Australia in early 2023, and although his T20I credentials have grown, a Test call-up remains elusive. The 34-year-old is trying to rectify that. He played a Ranji Trophy match for Mumbai last month and featured for India B in a Duleep Trophy match in September, although without much success.
“When the time comes, I will return to Test,” Suryakumar said ahead of India’s first T20I against South Africa in Durban. “I am playing all the national tournaments, whether red ball or white ball. I do not miss any game. If that [Test comeback] It has to happen, it will happen.”
Suryakumar also supported Test and ODI captain Rohit Sharma, who has been under fire after India were whitewashed 3-0 for the first time in a home Test series by New Zealand.
“In sports, winning and losing are common. Everyone works hard, everyone wants to win,” he said. “For me the most important thing in life is balance. Whether I am [Rohit] Whether he does well or not, his character does not change. “That’s a quality that I think an athlete should always have.”
It is still early days for Suryakumar, the T20I captain who took over full-time after Rohit’s retirement from the format following India’s T20 World Cup victory in June. Having played under Rohit for India and in the IPL for Mumbai Indians, Suryakumar said he has “learned a lot” from him, particularly the way he handles youngsters, a trait he is trying to assimilate into his captaincy style.
“I know how he [Rohit] He treats the players what he wants from them. So I have also taken that path because he has had a lot of success recently,” Suryakumar said. “When I am on the field, I keep noticing what his body language is, how calm he is in pressure situations, how he talks to the bowlers, how he treats everyone on and off the field.
“The most important thing is that from a leader you expect that the time he spends with you has that comfort. I try to replicate that. When I’m not on the field, I try to spend time with my teammates, eat with them, travel together.
“These are the little things that reflect on the field. If you want to earn your teammate’s respect and if you want him to deliver on the field, all of these things are very important. I add a little of my own flavor, and we go towards forward.”
Although the sample size is small, India has achieved excellent results under Suryakumar, having won 11 of 13 T20Is, which include series sweeps against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Suryakumar also has the experience of leading in South Africa, having captained the Indian team last year in a three-match T20I series that ended 1-1 with the match in Durban void.
Suryakumar said that his captaincy style is completely different from his aggressive batting style and that he tries to give his players a lot of “freedom and clarity”.
“You have to understand what is happening around you, what is happening in your [the players’] minds and it’s very important to give them that comfort,” she said. “Everyone has different abilities and also wants to go out and express themselves. So that freedom is very important when they enter the field and that is what I try to give.
“From a leader you expect that time spent with you will have that comfort. I try to replicate that.”
Suryakumar Yadav on learning captaincy traits from Rohit Sharma
“Whatever’s on their mind, I listen to them carefully. Off the field, I try to spend a lot of time with them to understand their strengths, who can help me in a current, pressure situation, and that’s just who I am.” in the field.
“This format is such that if you keep playing, you keep learning and it is very fast on the field. When you blink, the game is over. So freedom and clarity are very important when you play this format on the field.”
‘The young people have made my job very easy’
India has opted for a young T20I team for the three-match series against South Africa, with three uncapped players in the mix – Vijaykumar Vyshak, Ramandeep Singh and Yash Dayal. Even among the internationals, there are some who don’t have much international experience or are returning after a while, like Tilak Varma.
Suryakumar said managing the youngsters has not been difficult as they have been doing the work for their state teams and IPL franchises.
“They have made my job very easy if you have watched the last two or three series,” Suryakumar said of the youngsters. “I’ve told them to keep the needs of the team at the forefront, and whatever calls they make, we’re here to support them.
“Everyone knows what they have to do. The type of cricket they play for their state, the franchise, is the same as they have to play here. Only the color of the jersey changes and the emotions intensify. But the type of cricket they have been playing, they should play the same way. It’s refreshing to see them play.
Suryakumar also dismissed any theories that India would have problems on South Africa’s inflatable pitches, insisting that they also play on such surfaces at home. India have an excellent T20I record in South Africa, with six wins and three losses in nine matches.
“We also play on good bouncy courts in India. There are quite a few of them, so it’s nothing new for us,” he said. “And we played here last year. We know what the conditions are and what the wicket and the wicket have in store for us. We have our game plan, we will back it and we are very excited for the series ahead.”
