Suryakumar Yadav thanked cricket fans for their support in his first reaction after becoming India's new T20I captain. India announced their squads for the upcoming white-ball series against Sri Lanka on Thursday and revealed Suryakumar Yadav as the new T20I skipper.
The 33-year-old Mumbai Indians batter has dominated ICC T20 rankings for the last couple of years and was part of India's squad in the recent T20 World Cup 2024 triumph. He contributed to India's glory with a match-winning catch in the final over against South Africa.
"Thank you so much for outpouring love, support and best wishes from you," Suryakumar Yadav wrote in his Instagram post. "Last few weeks have been nothing short of a dream and I am truly grateful. Playing for the country is the most special feeling that I will never be able to describe in words. This new role brings with it, a lot of responsibility, excitement and enthusiasm. I hope to keep receiving your support and blessings. All fame reaches God, God is great."
Suryakumar has been India's top batter in the shortest format lately and has already captained the team in eight T20Is. However, his name emerged for the captain's role after the report of Hardik Pandya skipping the Sri Lanka tour surfaced in the media.
Hardik was designated vice-captain in the recent ODI and T20 World Cup and was tipped to take captaincy reins on the Sri Lanka tour. But the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee preferred Suryakumar over Hardik to lead India in T20Is. Suryakumar lacks leadership experience having never captained a team in domestic cricket and in the IPL while Hardik led Gujarat Titans to two successive IPL finals, winning the 2022 edition.
Meanwhile, both Suryakumar and Hardik were snubbed for the ODI squad selection for the Sri Lanka series. Shubman Gill was named vice-captain to both ODI and T20I teams after leading India to a 4-1 T20I series win over Zimbabwe last week.
