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Suryakumar Yadav has been struggling to get going in 2025 but the Canberra T20I showed he might be getting back to his best.
Suryakumar Yadav an unbeaten 39 off 24 in Canberra. (AP Photo)
2025 hasn’t been a great year for Suryakumar Yadav, the batter, even as he continues his hot streak of not losing a T20I series as India captain. The 35-year-old is currently leading India in a five-match bilateral T20I series in Australia and is eyeing a return to his best as the team starts fine-tuning preparations for next year’s World Cup at home.
Suryakumar has mustered 139 runs from 12 innings this year with a best of 47 not out during the recent Asia Cup. On Wednesday, he showed signs of some form, scoring an unbeaten 39 off 24 during the rain-affected first T20I between India and Australia at the Manuka Oval in Canberra.
Surya struck three fours and two sixes, including a flick off Josh Hazlewood that sent the ball soaring over the deep square leg boundary.
Former India batter Robin Uthappa has a word of advice for Suryakumar: don’t experiment with your batting position and stick to the No. 3 spot. For some time now, India have been employing the left-right combination in their batting order, meaning when a left-hander gets out, Tilak Varma – a left-handed batter – is promoted to No. 3 instead of Suryakumar.
On Wednesday though, Suryakumar walked out to bat despite Abhishek Sharma’s dismissal, and Uthappa reckons that should be the way forward, but if the team management wants to maintain the left-right combination, then the India T20I captain must not bat below No. 4.
“It’s like you are stuck between a rock and a hard place because it’s a decision where you need to see your performances and manage your captaincy as well. So it’s a very difficult decision to make. However, I feel he should come in one position. In my opinion, there is no better position than No. 3 for Suryakumar in T20 cricket,” Uthappa said on his YouTube channel.
“If the top three get set, you can bring flexibility after that. You can bring left-right combinations. In the Asia Cup, they probably decided that Tilak Varma would come at No. 3 if a left-hander got out and Surya would come if a right-hander got out. That’s still alright, but Suryakumar Yadav shouldn’t come below No. 4. A top-order batter has to make a lot of adjustments if he has to bat below No. 4,” he added.
Feroz Khan has been covering sports for over 12 years now and is currently working with Network18 as Principal Correspondent. He embarked on his journey in 2011 and has since acquired vast experience in digital…Read More
Feroz Khan has been covering sports for over 12 years now and is currently working with Network18 as Principal Correspondent. He embarked on his journey in 2011 and has since acquired vast experience in digital… Read More
October 30, 2025, 10:38 IST
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