Suryakumar Yadav as India skipper: All eyes on 2026 T20 World Cup at home

It’s amazing how often one man’s misfortune can result in a windfall for another. Until the middle of last October, Suryakumar Yadav was nowhere in the captaincy frame, with Hardik Pandya the firm favourite to replace Rohit Sharma at the helm in white-ball cricket as and when the latter called it quits. Then, at the 50-over World Cup, Pandya injured his ankle against Bangladesh, an injury that kept him out of action for more than five months and facilitated Suryakumar’s elevation as skipper for the home T20I series against Australia.

The unlikely twist has now culminated in, barring the unforeseen, Suryakumar almost certainly being entrusted with the responsibility of spearheading India’s defence of their title at the T20 World Cup at home in 2026.

In the clearest indication that they have moved on from Pandya – the captain in a stand-in capacity for three One-Day Internationals and 16 Twenty20 Internationals in Rohit’s absence – India’s selectors named Suryakumar as the skipper for the three-match T20I series while also naming Shubman Gill as the deputy for both legs.

Rohit, now retired from T20Is, will marshall the ODI side which also includes Virat Kohli, with an eye on kicking off preparations for the 50-over Champions Trophy in February-March.

Pandya’s injury issues

Pandya has reason to feel disappointed at the not unexpected turn of events. From the time Gautam Gambhir was named Rahul Dravid’s successor as head coach, whispers have been doing the rounds that the new boss wasn’t too keen on having a player with a history of fitness/injury issues as the captain.

The ankle injury isn’t Pandya’s only dalliance with the infirmary; he has picked up numerous other injuries and his frail body isn’t equipped enough to shoulder a serious workload, which explains why his promising Test career has been restricted to a mere 11 appearances.

Such is the lot of an all-rounder that he is prone to injuries more than even specialist pacers. That, coupled with a naturally-uncooperative body despite Pandya being one of the fittest players in world cricket, meant his ambitions have had to be put on hold. No international side can afford to be kept in suspense over the availability of its captain.

Importance of continuity in leadership

The fact that Pandya has only played 46 of India’s 79 T20Is since the beginning of 2022 is indication enough that he can’t always be relied upon to spearhead his team’s challenge. As a player, that is not such a huge setback because a replacement can be summoned, but when the said player is also the captain, an injury-enforced absence will create a leadership vacuum and a lack of constancy in the style of captaincy that is such a crucial element in the success of an outfit.

Suryakumar didn’t have great captaincy credentials, but Pandya’s ankle injury opened the door for him during the home T20Is against Australia in November, just days after the men from Down Under stunned the hosts in the World Cup final in Ahmedabad. Given his standing as one of the premier batters in T20Is – Suryakumar only recently dropped down to No. 2 in the ICC rankings for T20I batters after holding the top position for nearly two years – his is one of the first names in any 20-over XI.

SKY is game-aware

He has been relatively injury-free, his record only marred by an ankle injury followed by a sports hernia surgery that kept him out of action from December to March, but unlike Pandya, he isn’t a serial offender. Also, unlike Pandya the all-rounder, Suryakumar can focus entirely and solely on strategising when his team is on the field, and he has shown in his two series in charge that he is game-aware and extremely sharp when it comes to thinking on his feet.

Suryakumar has a 5-2 record in his seven T20Is in charge – he led India to a 4-1 drubbing of Australia at home and a 1-1 draw in South Africa – and reiterated that the cares of captaincy don’t impact his value as a batter. He slammed two half-centuries and a 56-ball hundred in his eight hits as captain, batting with the same flair and innovation that have made him the most difficult batter to set fields to in the 20-over format.

Next T20 World Cup in 2026

Even though he is three years older than Pandya, he is a very fit 33 who takes very good care of his body; by the time of the next T20 World Cup, Suryakumar will be 35, would have spent a year and a half in the hot seat and have had the opportunity to stamp his style and authority on the team. Most significantly, the management group won’t have to grapple with the realistic prospect of losing their skipper at the last minute to a non-cricketing injury, inasmuch as that is possible.

Surya-Gambhir combo

Suryakumar is a popular player within the group and is already a veteran of 68 T20Is. He has had ample experience of life in the fast lane, and having captained against Australia and South Africa, he knows first-hand what it entails to take on the best. He will only grow into his role with greater exposure; in Gambhir, he has an aggressive but astute guiding hand, and together, they are well-positioned to carry forward the grand work of Rohit and Dravid, although temperamentally, the two pairs couldn’t be any more different.

Shubman Gill – the future leader

The appointment of Gill as Suryakumar’s deputy is an interesting move with the message loud and clear – the time to start planning for tomorrow is nigh.

Gill was unfortunate not to make the cut for the World Cup but was in charge of a young and relatively inexperienced team on the recent T20I tour of Zimbabwe. After a sapping loss in a low-scoring first game, Gill roused his troops superbly and India bounced back to clinch a 4-1 series victory.

Gill is no stranger to captaincy, having been in charge of Gujarat Titans in IPL 2024 after Pandya made the move back to Mumbai Indians, and while his team didn’t make it to the playoffs, he had a good run with the bat.

That he is the vice-captain for both limited-overs legs suggests that not too long from now, the captaincy will be his too.

Gambhir on the right track

One of Gambhir’s huge challenges was always going to be overseeing a period of transition across formats within the national set-up. The first selections in the Gambhir era indicate that he is on the right track and more than adequately equipped to meet all challenges head-on.