IND vs AUS T20Is: High time captain Surya shook off poor run

If it was the return of Ro-Ko which shaped the context for the last ODI series between India and Australia, it’s time for the top two T20I teams to finetune their arsenal for the five upcoming games from Wednesday ahead of World T20 early next year. The Men in Blue, who have lost just three T20I matches since the 2024 World Cup win, wear a more settled look in this format, barring their skipper Suryakumar Yadav.

The disarming smile and easygoing demeanour at pre-match media interactions has been SKY's hallmark, but that cannot hide the fact that the former world no. 1 T20 batter has not had a single 50 this year in the only format he plays in. While the ageism card has been used against the Big Two of Indian cricket in recent times, Surya — who turned 35 in September — has been spared and is likely to stay the skipper until the World Cup in India and Sri Lanka.

A late starter in international cricket, the Mumbaikar knows his time is ticking and it will be interesting to see what approach he takes on the hard and bouncy wickets of Australia — play to his strength as ‘Mr 360 Degrees’ as he does at no. 3 or try to spend some time at the wicket as Rohit Sharma did in the ODIs. For the record, SKY has scratched together 100 runs in 11 innings with a strike rate of 105.26 during the year, in sharp contrast to his IPL form. 

He was in vintage form in the Mumbai Indians shirt, amassing 717 runs in 15 matches for the five-time champions at a staggering average of 65.18 and a strike rate of 167.91. During India’s successful Asia Cup campaign in the UAE in September, Surya’s failure was perhaps glossed over with all the drama surrounding the India-Pakistan matches as the captain managed only 72 runs in seven innings, the top score being a 47 against the arch rivals in their first league game.

Asked about his struggle with form, Surya struck a positive note and seemed in no mood to abandon his natural game. “I feel I’ve been working really hard. I’ve had good sessions back home and a few solid ones here, so I’m in a good space,” he said ahead of the match.

“Runs will come eventually, but I’m working hard towards the team goal. It’s more important to deliver what the team needs in different situations. I take one game at a time — if it starts now, it’ll be a good thing.”

Harping on the need for Surya to fire in the crucial series, TV pundit Parthiv Patel said during a pre-series analysis: ‘’More than the personal thing, I feel that it’s important that Surya finds form for the team. Basically, we know what he can do as a batter; if he gets runs, he can completely destroy the opposition. From that point of view, I feel that if Surya gets some runs, it will be very helpful for the team.’’

Meanwhile, the return of Jasprit Bumrah, who was kept out of the ODI series, seemed to have got the Indian captain more excited and hopeful of getting breakthroughs in the powerplays. The bounce of Australian wickets is just what the pace ace relishes and it will be worthwhile to recall that even during his team’s 3-1 rout in the last Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Bumrah emerged the highest wicket taker of the series with 32 scalps, and was Player of the Series.

‘’You saw in the Asia Cup, he (Bumrah) took the responsibility of bowling two overs minimum in the power play, so it is good that he is raising his hand, acting as if he is that guy who will take charge. It is going to be a good challenge, definitely against the Aussie team in the power play,’’ the skipper added.

T20I series schedule

29 October: Canberra, Manuka Oval (1.45 pm IST)

31 October: Melbourne (1.45 pm IST)

2 November: Hobart, Bellerive Oval (1.45 pm IST)

6 November: Gold Coast (1.45 pm IST)

8 November: Brisbane, Gabba (1.45 pm IST)