India’s T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav has spoken about the team’s motivation to win the 2026 T20 World Cup at home, emphasising the emotional significance of lifting the trophy in Ahmedabad. India had entered the tournament as defending champions after their 2024 triumph in the USA and the Caribbean, which had been led by Rohit Sharma and featured senior players such as Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja, all of whom later stepped away from the format.
“There was just minor differences between the two teams,” Suryakumar said in an interview with PTI while comparing the 2024 and 2026 squads. “That was an experienced team, and very committed. This team is passionate. This year, I can say that we had less experience but more enthusiasm. All the guys are 25 to 27 years old.
“It was necessary to explain to them how it feels to win a World Cup in India, when people will cheer so much for you, 50,000 people, a lakh people, in the stadium.”
Captaincy Success and Personal Milestones
Under Suryakumar’s leadership, India have won 42 of the 52 T20Is he has captained, giving him a success rate of 80.76%. The skipper said this achievement has, in a way, compensated for his modest academic results during his younger years.
“I feel that the percentage I tried to achieve in school and college by studying, I’m getting that today in cricket here,” he said. “There, I could never cross [50-60%]. But definitely, it feels good to hear this. Although, I don’t pay much attention to stats. But nobody likes to lose in any game. I also love winning all the games.
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“My family tried a lot to educate me first, [but] in a short time they got the idea that this boy is not interested in studies. This boy can’t be controlled. But their support was always there in sports because they could see that I was enjoying it, I liked playing. So they said, ‘okay, go play; if nothing happens later, then we are here to take care of it’.”
Journey to the India Team
Suryakumar made his domestic debuts across formats for Mumbai in 2010 but had to wait until 2021 to earn his international cap. While he has played 37 ODIs — the most recent in November 2023 — and featured in one Test, it is in T20Is that he has established himself as a key performer. Across 113 matches, he has scored 3272 runs at a strike rate of 162.94.
He revealed that a crucial conversation with his wife Devisha played a major role in shaping his path to international cricket.
“We got married in 2016 when I was still playing for KKR. Everything was going very smooth. I was playing well, enjoying, and she looked at my journey and my routines till 2018 when I joined Mumbai Indians,” Suryakumar said. “I think we started doing things a little differently. She told me that all those who played with you in age group, a lot of them are now playing for India, what do you have in mind? I said I wanted to play for India too. ‘How do you plan to do it,’ she asked.
“It was a nice little conversation with her, not an argument but discussion. But yes, it was a discussion about how can you take one extra step forward in your endeavour. If I want to play for India and want to win games for India, how do I do it?”
Life Changes and Professional Growth
Following that discussion, Suryakumar said he made significant lifestyle adjustments to improve his focus and performance.
“We had to cut down on a lot of things – from diet to friends circles to weekends, rest on Saturday-Sunday, Monday to Friday work schedule, so we set the ball rolling and in 2018, I had a very good IPL season and also domestic cricket,” he said. “That year, I got a chance to open for Mumbai Indians and I got runs too. Come 2019 and 2020, we kept doing the same thing and I was in a different mood. She saw that I had started enjoying the game even more, 2020 was even better, and then in 2021, I got picked for India.
“She has been a big influence behind the scenes in telling me honest things. If it is your partner, she will always be honest because all she would want is your growth because if you want to grow together, conversations have to be honest. At times, it has been brutal too, but then it has been good. If I am where I am today, those conversations have gone a long way.
“I give her 100% credit because it is not that she gave me cricketing advice but she told me a lot of things related to life. What do I do? How to approach a certain situation? How do I carry myself?
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“She told me to not to carry cricket back home. These were all important things that I learnt. You need to stay humble, grounded irrespective of your achievements. ‘At home, you are not Suryakumar Yadav, so be normal; after having food, keep your plate in the sink’. These little things that add value to your life.”
