T20 WC: Common Man's Captain SKY Finds Unique Winning Formula To Tame The Grandest Stage
Eventually, he broke out of the vault, scoring three fifties across five T20Is against the Kiwis.
By : PTI
Update: 2026-03-08 17:08 GMT
Ahmedabad: Suryakumar Yadav had a rather mischievous look on his face right after Tilak Varma held on to a skier by Jacob Duffy, hardly reflective of the elation that the Indian team might have felt after defending its T20 World Cup title with a 96-run win over New Zealand here on Sunday.But then it was typical Suryakumar -- rarely over the top in his expressions whether in victory or defeat. The title win was a just reward for the man who led the team without any frills, a captain who copped a fair amount of criticism for not coming good with the bat.
Going into the World Cup, nobody would not have wanted to be in Suryakumar's shoes.
Until the home bilateral series against New Zealand, the Mumbaikar was struggling to cobble together a decent score, and, in fact, his last 50-plus score came way back in 2024.
To be precise, just 100 runs in 11 innings in that period.
Even when the usual heights deserted SKY, he would not lose heart, saying he is not out of form but just short of runs.
It's tough for one from outside to find the difference between those two cricketing states, but Suryakumar then has always been his own man, governed by his own rules.
Eventually, he broke out of the vault, scoring three fifties across five T20Is against the Kiwis.
While as a batter that could have been a solace for him, but leading the team into a home World Cup where fans expect nothing less than a trophy is an altogether different proposition.
Before him, only one Indian captain had won a World Cup at home, when the incomparable MS Dhoni led the team to triumph in the 2011 50-over World Cup.
Even some of the legendary names like Kapil Dev (1986) and Rohit Sharma (2023) had failed to lift the title on home soil.
History might have been weighing heavily against Suryakumar but he has hardly ever been a man suppressed by the past.
There was an additional of pressure of taking over a triumphant team from Rohit Sharma, whose last act in India's T20I jersey was lifting the title in Barbados in 2024.
So, nothing less than another trophy was expected of Suryakumar. And at 35, this was practically his last shot at glory as it's tough to envisage him in India colours two years down the road.
Whether he likes it or not, there would have always been comparison with Rohit.
But he found a way to tackle this multi-headed monster -- take no pressure at all.
It was evident in his press conferences during this tounament.
Suryakumar was asked about bringing back Abhishek Sharma into the eleven after a stomach bug laid him low ahead of the Super Eight match against Pakistan in Colombo.
It was a serious cricketing question but Suryakumar chose to reply in jest: "If you (reporters) want him, we will play him."
He adopted a similar approach to questions pertaining to Kuldeep Yadav, and Sanju Samson, playing down the queries with a smile and funny answers.
On the surface, his replies appeared annoying to some but it was clear that Suryakumar did not want to give too many of his thoughts away, which could lead to chatter even before a game started.
Even within the team, Suryakumar did not play the much-publicised 'Surya Dada' role, but left it to the individuals to chart their own course.
"I started to relate to this team after 5-6 months (of captaincy). After that, I understood that there is no point in being a big brother or a father. You have to leave them.
"They dictate their own terms. So, I have seen that when they get freedom, they become a different character on the ground," Suryakumar had said in the pre-match press conference ahead of the final.
It was a vastly different method from Rohit -- his predecessor. The fellow Mumbai man was an elderly brother to the team members, and his on-mike scolding and chiding of them had a separate fan base.
But one won't get those "garden mein ghoomnewale" remarks from Suryakumar, whose annoyance and elation were restricted to a mere contortion of his ever-shaven face.
Suryakumar had an explanation for it.
"Shoes are mine, I only follow his footsteps. I got to learn a lot of things from him when I was playing under him. So, I also followed the same strategy, same fundamentals.
"I played a lot of cricket with Rohit. I know how he worked. So, I tried to implement the same things with a few thoughts of mine," he offered.
So, now to that often-asked question. Where will Suryakumar, who now plays just T20s, be placed in the pantheon of Indian cricketers?
There certainly are more fancied names, who left far deeper impact on Indian cricket.
But one may not find a cricketer who gave everyone such joy and remained a topic of discussion while operating from such a small space -- a T20 specialist.
In that context, he has been as unique as his batting, clever and calculative.
And he will walk away, whenever that moment comes, content in the knowledge that he will be mentioned in the same breath as MS Dhoni, Rohit and Kapil Dev -- the men who brought the World Cup to India's showcase.
It's an elite club to have a membership for a common man's captain.