New Delhi: Flamboyant India batter Suryakumar Yadav, who was named as the T20I skipper of Team India for the Sri Lanka tour on Thursday, has been receiving congratulatory messages from all over the country and has got one stand-out wish from his childhood coach as well. Ashok Aswalkar, who played a key role in honing “Mr 360’s” skills since he was a child, expressed his pleasure after hearing the news of his T20I captaincy appointment.
Aswalkar said that he had texted his protege before his appointment, anticipating that he would get good news. Although Suryakumar has served as the T20I skipper of Team India during the South Africa tour in December last year and the home series against Australia before that, he was assumed on the sidelines as skipper for the upcoming Sri Lanka T20Is. The selectors showed faith in him and found him the ideal replacement for Rohit Sharma, who bid adieu to the shorter format last month after the T20 World Cup triumph.
“I had messaged him (SKY) in the afternoon saying that you would get a big message today, and in the evening, when we heard the news, I felt very proud… I feel very happy. Captaincy is a slightly different role. He played in the World Cup 2024 with great players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Ravindra Jadeja. By playing with such great cricketers, we get to learn a lot,” Aswalkar said.
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It is well known that when Gautam Gambhir led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Suryakumar was an integral part of the squad he led. He has seen his growth from a very close point of view and seems to have found him capable enough for the captaincy role. It would be a three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka that starts on July 27 in Pallekele and will last till July 30, in which the duo will feature.
Hardik Pandya, whose captaincy elevation looked natural after Rohit’s departure from the format, wasn’t even named the vice-captain of the squad. Shubman Gill will serve as SKY’s deputy and as Rohit’s in the ODIs. Surya had notably led Team India against Australia in a home T20I series which the hosts won 4-1 right after the heartbreak at ODI World Cup 2023. India further levelled the South Africa T20Is 1-1 in December
India squad for Sri Lanka T20Is:
Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rinku Singh, Riyan Parag, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Khaleel Ahmed, Mohammed Siraj.
Suryakumar Yadav’s childhood coach is one happy man after hearing the gratifying news of his protege being named as the T20I skipper of Team India for the Sri Lanka tour. SKY pipped Hardik Pandya to replace Rohit Sharma as the captain in the shortest format. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
