Tried To Make As Few Changes As We Could Till The 2026 T20 World Cup Came, Says Suryakumar

Tried to make as few changes as we could till the 2026 T20 World Cup came, says Suryakumar (Image Source: IANS)

T20 World Cup: India's 2026 Men’s T20 World Cup winning captain Suryakumar Yadav said the bedrock of the recent title triumph was down to a deliberate policy of minimal selection changes and unflinching trust in a settled group of players.

Speaking in a panel discussion at the BCCI Awards ceremony in New Delhi, Suryakumar laid out the thinking that underpinned two years of careful squad management. "See, it was not that difficult. I think from where we left in 2024 under Rahul sir, from then, we knew that we needed to show a lot of trust, belief in the players. Because you see, sometimes in sport, you won't be seeing good things happening around.

“There'll be lots of ups and downs, but then you have to show a lot of trust in players, belief in them, and that's what we wanted to do when we started that new cycle for the 2026 T20 World Cup. Since then, till the T20 World Cup came, we tried to make as few changes as we could.

“When you come into a big tournament like this, I think it's really important to stand by the players who've done really well for you in the last two years. So you've got to stick with them, and we always knew that if we have created, as he always says, Gauti bhai, that we've created a super team, we've picked a super team, so let's stick to them," he said.

That stability, Suryakumar said, was tested from the very first game of the tournament, when they had a batting collapse against the USA at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, before the Indian skipper rescued them with a fine 84.

"You rightly said we were favourites going into the tournament. But at the same time, when you know that you're going to play at home, in front of your home crowd, yes, there is going to be excitement.

“But there was a lot of pressure. We were having a lot of nerves, and you must have seen that in the first game when we started against the USA. But there was a lot of pressure. When you play at home, there is a lot of pressure."

Suryakumar further credited the batting unit's collective selflessness as a key driver of totals that regularly breached 200, and singled out Sanju Samson's repeated willingness to sacrifice personal milestones for the team's cause to win.

"See, we were playing with eight batters. We always knew that someone or the other could do that job for us. But as I said, we played the same way in the last one and a half years. We tried to, whenever we got an opportunity, we tried to bat the side out.

"I think all the batters took their responsibilities. They didn't think about their personal milestones at 49s, 90s. If you had seen Sanju play, he got two 89s and one 97.

"He could have easily gotten a 100, but then he knew what responsibility he had towards the team and went for it. But all the batters had their own responsibilities, chipped in with good contributions. I think that helped us pass 200, 250 sometimes."

On how quickly momentum can shift in T20 cricket, Suryakumar had a philosophical look. "I mean, 10-15 minutes is still a long time. What you're saying changes in and over. But we tried to play our best cricket, put our best foot forward, and tried to keep things very simple and rest. I think the boys did it for me."

Suryakumar also spoke warmly about the satisfaction of keeping head coach Gautam Gambhir smiling through a pressure-laden campaign. "I think it was not that difficult. We tried our best throughout the tournament, which we played. Though not many games where he could smile and relax. But in the final post, we could see him smiling, but we tried our best to make him smile."

With cricket set to feature at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, Suryakumar made no secret of his ambitions of adding an Olympic gold to their growing collection of ICC silverware. "I mean, it's a great thing that a big event is happening, and cricket is getting an entry into that.

“Of course, it will be a special thing. There are two events in that year. There's a T20 World Cup as well that time, Olympics as well - so why not? If you've done two in a row, why not three in a row in T20s and definitely the Olympic gold?"

With cricket set to feature at the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028, Suryakumar made no secret of his ambitions of adding an Olympic gold to their growing collection of ICC silverware. "I mean, it's a great thing that a big event is happening, and cricket is getting an entry into that.

“I think that one step was important. That taste was important for everyone to understand what it takes to win an ICC trophy. But now there's no looking back. If this wonderful thing has started, let's try to collect as many as possible."

Article Source: IANS