In a massive decision, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) sacked Suryakumar Yadav as T20I captain ahead of the tour of Ireland and England. He was also dropped from the T20I squad that was picked on Saturday, June 6 for the tour of Ireland and England. Shreyas Iyer was named as the new Team India skipper in T20Is, while Tilak Varma was picked as his deputy.
Earlier this year, Suryakumar led India to victory in the T20 World Cup played at home. However, his form with the bat was scratchy as he managed just one half-century in the ICC event. The 35-year-old also struggled for runs while representing Mumbai Indians (MI) in IPL 2026.
There have been mixed reactions over the decision to sack Suryakumar as T20I captain. In this feature, we take a look at top five expert reactions to the move.
#1 Sanjay Manjrekar
Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar reckons that, apart from batting form, Suryakumar’s fitness also played a role in him being dropped from the Indian T20I side. He opined that the 35-year-old could have worked a bit harder on his fitness. Speaking on Sony Sports, Manjrekar said:
“Surya losing form at his age made me wonder if he will have a second wind in T20s and become the player he was three to four years back. He’s not a 25 or 30-year-old. And as it panned out, with T20 being a hand-eye coordination game, you need to be supremely fit or young to have the kind of reflexes to meet bat on ball. Age not being on his side and plus, if he could have worked on his fitness a lot more, maybe things would have been slightly different.”
Suryakumar scored 270 runs in 13 innings during MI’s IPL 2026 campaign, averaging 20.76 at a strike rate of 147.54, with two half-centuries.
#2 Ravichandran Ashwin
Former India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin questioned the selectors over their decision to sack Suryakumar as T20I captain. Admitting that the MI star’s form has been a concern, he opined that T20 World Cup-winning skipper should have been given a chance to prove himself in the England series. During a discussion on ESPNcricinfo, Ashwin said:
“Is there a possibility that they could have given Surya a bit more time? And if you feel he’s not walking into your XI, (take the call). Could he have been given that big England series to ask himself to be proving once again as a batter that he belongs in that place? I just think he deserved that after having accomplished such a huge feat in his career.”
In nine innings in T20 World Cup 2026, Suryakumar scored 242 runs at an average of 30.25 and a strike rate of 136.72, with a solitary half-century.
#3 Subramaniam Badrinath
Former India batter Subramaniam Badrinath expressed surprise at the selectors’ decision to sack Suryakumar as T20I captain even though he had led India to World Cup glory. Pointing out that something similar had happened with Rohit Sharma after the Champions Trophy, Badrinath said on (his YouTube channel):
“It’s definitely the end of the road for Suryakumar Yadav. We won’t see him in international cricket anymore. His winning percentage as a T20I captain is extremely high. Yet, these selectors have easily thrown him out. The same thing happened to Rohit Sharma after winning the Champions Trophy. There is a certain ruthlessness in the current team management.”
Rohit led India to victory in the 2025 Champions Trophy in the UAE. However, he was subsequently sacked as one-day captain and replaced by Shubman Gill.
#4 Aakash Chopra
Former India opener Aakash Chopra has questioned the manner of Suryakumar’s sacking as T20I captain. According to Chopra, having won the T20 World Cup, the 35-year-old could have been given a farewell series by the selectors. The former India batter commented:
“The last image you’ll have is him holding the World Cup trophy. World Cup trophy and then he gets dropped from the team. That doesn’t happen, man. That usually doesn’t happen. What I believed was that he should have been given an ‘off-ramp’ like telling him, ‘these are your last two series, play them, we’re making you captain. After this, it’s goodbye.’ If you don’t say goodbye, then we will drop you and that would have been the fair thing to do.”
Having made a belated T20I debut in 2021, Suryakumar has featured in 113 matches and has scored 3,272 runs at an average of 36.35 and a strike rate of 162.94, with four hundreds and 25 half-centuries.
#5 Sadagopan Ramesh
Former India opener Sadagopan Ramesh stated that Suryakumar should not be too surprised or disappointed over being removed as T20I captain. Ramesh pointed out that the 35-year-old has been struggling with the willow for a couple of seasons now and opined that the time had come to move on from him. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ramesh said:
“Though dropping a captain immediately after he led the side to a World Cup win is surprising, it’s a transition that Surya himself will be able to accept. Yes, he will be disappointed inside. But I feel this move would have been communicated to him weeks after the T20 World Cup itself.”
Suryakumar captained India in 52 T20Is, winning 40 and losing just eight. Two matches ended in a tie, while two produced no result. He ended his captaincy stint with a win percentage of 76.92.
Edited by Renin Wilben Albert
