IND vs SA T20 World Cup 2026 Super 8s: Ex-India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has slammed India captain Suryakumar Yadav for batting slowly during the ongoing mega event. He did praise his 84-run knock during the first match against the USA, but revealed that his speed has declined significantly, making it hard for batters like Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, and Rinku Singh in the death overs.
“There is something that I am seeing in Suryakumar Yadav which I’m not liking too much. 77-6, India against USA, at the Wankhede, and Suryakumar Yadav had to change his game, which he did brilliantly. Just slowed down a little bit, and then exploded, and got a great score, player of the match, and everything," Manjrekar was quoted as saying on his Instagram account.
He also said that after that, Yadav had taken his approach too far. “Since then, I think he is taking that a bit too far. Against Pakistan, where India lost a couple of wickets, he really pulled down the shutters quite a lot. He and Tilak Varma are both playing slightly conservatively, and in the end, what happens is that people like Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, and Rinku Singh are not really tapped into resources as much," he added.
‘Surya Must Be Careful About…’
Manjrekar highlighted that in the shortest format, it is quite risky for a captain to stay in the middle while batting first or chasing a target of 200 runs. He opined that no top-order batter should control an innings and helped the team chase the target, also warning Suryakumar to be careful with his approach.
“In T20 cricket, that is a dangerous thing to do, where a senior player or captain feels like he has got to stay in, especially while batting first. When you are setting targets of 200 plus, if you have somebody in the top four who believes that he is the guy who has got to control the innings and make sure he is the one who will take India to a certain score, that is a very dangerous tactic. No batter must think like that. So, Surya must be careful about that," he concluded.
He is India's second-highest run-scorer in this mega event, having scored 164 runs, and is just behind Ishan Kishan. But his strike rate of 136.13 is just behind Kishan's, who has a staggering strike rate of 202.29.
India will lock horns with South Africa during their first Super 8 match on Sunday. They have remained unbeaten till now and ended the group stage as the table toppers of Group A.