Suryakumar Yadav in T20I series against England (Source: AP Photos)
Suryakumar Yadav was the number 1 T20I batter for a long time and his consistency mixed with aggressive outlook played a big role in India's success in the format since his debut in 2021. It quickly increased his stature in world cricket and the star batter was made the full-time T20I captain after India's win in World Cup 2024.
He has captained brilliantly and India are yet to lose a series under his leadership, but his form with the bat has dipped a bit and it is a cause of worry for the Indian team management. Let's now look at the difference in Suryakumar Yadav's performance as a pure batter and as a captain in T20Is.
Suryakumar Yadav's Average Has Dropped With Captaincy Load?
Suryakumar Yadav has scored 2596 runs in 77 T20I innings with an average at 39.33 and a strike-rate of 167.70. He has four hundreds and 21 fifties in the format, and it is a record that very few players can even come close to. However, his record as a pure batter is even better, and he scored 2040 runs at an average of 43.40 with strike-rate of 168.17 with three hundreds and 17 fifties in it.
However, as a captain, his average has dropped to 29.26 with 556 runs in 19 innings which include one hundred and four fifties. So, his average has taken a beating, but he has played some quality knocks as well and there are bound to be failures when you are taking an aggressive route in the shortest format.
His average is still decent and strike-rate has not gone down much, and we can expect management to back their captain and he is expected to deliver soon with two more matches against England coming up.