IND vs AUS: “I’ve Always Told Them That You Have To Keep The Team First…” – Suryakumar Yadav Wants His Players To Be Selfless Against Australia

Stand-in skipper Suryakumar Yadav urged the Indian team to play a fearless brand of cricket putting the team first rather than playing for the personal milestone in the five-match T20 series against Australia starting on Thursday. The Men in Blue will begin their preparations for the T20 World Cup in 2024, with youngsters being the main focus of the series.

After losing in the first round of the 2021 T20 World Cup, India committed to play an aggressive brand of cricket under Rohit Sharma. In the eight bilateral series, India changed their strategy, playing aggressively and without regard for the outcome, which paid off for the team in the 2023 ODI World Cup just before the marquee final against Australia.

Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Suryakumar Yadav revealed the team’s plans against Australia in the five-match T20 series and wants everyone to play a selfless brand of cricket to put the team’s front before them and said that he shares a lot of bond with the players, having played with them in the IPL, and is excited to lead them up in front of the home crowd.

“What I told them [squad] when I met them in the afternoon today was let’s be very selfless when we go into the field Because I’m a guy who doesn’t think too much about the personal milestones and instead thinks of the team’s goal. And I’ve always told them that you have to keep the team first and then whatever comes after that, you can take your call”. 

“And I’ve played with them a lot of times during the IPL and a few India games as well, so they know how I function. And it wasn’t that difficult and we are really excited to go about in the series,” Suryakumar Yadav said.

The Men in Blue will look to be an aggressive and dominant brand of cricket in T20s as they invested in the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma, and Tilak Varma in the shorter format of the game and have performed well for the team in the Asian Games 2022. The youngsters could be crucial for the team’s chances in the  2024 T20 World Cup in the West Indies and USA.