Suryakumar Yadav, the captain of India’s Twenty20 International team, expressed satisfaction with the team’s performance against South Africa in the inaugural Twenty20 International, which ended here at the Barabati Stadium on Tuesday, and stated that the team was having a “great run” in the format going into the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Before the bowlers grabbed control, Hardik Pandya’s undefeated 59 helped India have 175/6 on board when they were put to bat first. The hosts defeated the visitors for a pitiful 74, their lowest-ever T20I total, thanks to equal contributions from the pacers and spinners.
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Suryakumar commended the batters’ efforts and stated that he had not anticipated the side, who were trailing 48-3 in 6.3 overs at the time, to score a 175-run total.
“The way Hardik, Axar, and Tilak batted at 48 for 3, and then getting to 175, and finally Jitesh coming in, chipping in and doing his role, I think it was very important.” We initially anticipated reaching 160, but 175 was astounding. There will be days when two or three of the seven or eight batters don’t have their day, but the other four batters will make up for it, like they did today. Perhaps someone else will cover it up in the next game. We want everyone to play T20 cricket in this manner. Everyone should enjoy batting and be fearless. After the game, the captain remarked, “India is having a great run.”
He was thrilled by how Jasprit Bumrah and Arshdeep Singh got India going in the second innings, and he was also impressed by Pandya, who hit on his first delivery of the match. Pandya added one scalp to his collection after scoring a game-changing 59*, while Arshdeep and Bumrah both finished with two wickets.
“I believe that Bumrah and Arshdeep were the ideal bowlers to start with.” I believe Arshdeep and Bumrah were the better choice based on how they bowled when they won the toss and bowled first, as well as how they bowled the new ball. However, it was crucial to look for Hardik as well once he returned from an injury. And I’m quite pleased with the way he bowled. Batting first, 48 for 3, scoring roughly 90–91 runs between overs 7 and 15, and then ending with 40–44 runs in the next five overs to reach 175… It was very, really admirable, in my opinion. I believe 175 was quite good given the way we bowled and the variety of choices we had,” he continued.
Read More
2nd ODI: We can take a lot of confidence with this win, says Bavuma after SA chase 359