India keep winning under SKY, but a couple issues persist

Suryakumar Yadav’s brilliant record as captain of India’s T20I team continued with another series win, this time against Australia by 2-1 after the fifth and final match in Brisbane was abandoned due to a combination of bad light and rain. 

The series began on a damp note in Canberra, where only 9.4 overs were possible before rain forced an abandonment, and on Saturday it came to a soggy conclusion with just 4.4 overs bowled. 

In between these two washouts, India came back from being 0-1 down to go up 2-1 which is testament to their resolve – they are, after all, the No 1 team in T20Is – and the end result means that under SKY, India have yet to lose a bilateral series. 

The 35-year-old’s record now stands at 27 wins from 34 matches, with just five losses and two washed out games. That is an outstanding record, and any critics out there cannot complain about SKY winning only in India. Because under him, India have won a T20 series in South Africa – where they also leveled the 2023 series – and now Australia, apart from in Sri Lanka 3-0 and not too long ago in the UAE where they won the Asia Cup. 

With two more T20I series to go before next year’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, this Indian team has the chance to iron out a few creases. Otherwise, as with the Champions Trophy and Asia Cup in 2025, India look like favourites.

Foremost is SKY’s own batting form. His last half-century was in October 2024. Since then, he’s gone 18 innings with a best of 47 not out. His average in this time is 14 and his strike-rate 120.68, which is a massive drop from his career strike-rate of 164.41. 

There were sparks of the old SKY in these games in Australia, such as the series opener when he hurried to 39 not out from 24 balls, and then in Hobart and Carrara with innings of 24 off 11 and 20 off 10. But too often the trademark shots are finding boundary riders instead of sailing into the stands for six, and at times his off-side shots have appeared sluggish. 

With India winning, SKY will remain captain until the T20 World Cup. Thereafter, irrespective of how India fare in the tournament, it is likely that a younger leader will be looked at. 

The leading candidate, prima facie, is Shubman Gill who leads India in Tests and ODIs. He was named vice-captain of the T20I squad, but his returns of late are disappointing. Gill returned to the T20I setup for the Asia Cup, where he managed 127 runs in seven innings. He struck well (151.19) but had a highest score of 47. In Australia, Gill scored 132 runs from five innings, of which the first and last were aborted due to rain. He looked solid both times, and there was a laboured 39-ball 46 in the fourth match where all other Indian batsmen struggled apart from Axar Patel down the order. 

In this series, it was apparent that Gill was trying to score faster. But he did not get a big score, and there are limitations to his game in T20Is, particularly when stacked up against the way his opening partner Abhishek Sharma bats. And with Yashasvi Jaiswal in the wings, there will be a degree of pressure on Gill, 26, to produce big scores. 

Another key batsman who struggled in this series was Tilak Varma, the hero of the Asia Cup final and a man seen as a future leader as well. Tilak batted thrice and returned scores of 0, 29 and 5 at a strike-rate of 100. He will be granted room given his talent and the fact that he was playing for the first time in Australia, but what message did it send when Tilak was benched for the last game? 

The wicketkeeper role is also not locked, given Rishabh Pant’s imminent return. Sanju Samson batted once, failed, and was dropped. Jitesh Sharma got the next three games, batted twice, clicked in one innings, and flopped in the other. If Pant comes back, one of the two will have to go. It was not too long ago that Samson looked a certainty for the World Cup, but then the BCCI selectors recalled Gill and Jitesh and it all went south. 

Coming to the bowling, India had to figure out the right balance with Hardik Pandya out with injury. They went with two specialist fast bowlers in every match, along with three spinners and Shivam Dube as the third pace option. It worked out well in the end, with Dube’s wickets of Mitchell Marsh and Tim David in the fourth match proving the turning point. 

Jasprit Bumrah played all five games and claimed just three wickets but kept a check on runs (economy 6.58) and bowled some top overs, particularly at the death. It was good that India shelved the Asia Cup ploy of bowling three of his overs inside the Powerplay, since Bumrah’s experience proved invaluable in the form of two overs in the backend of Australia’s innings in this series. 

Arshdeep Singh got more playing time than he did all year and took four wickets from his three games, three of which came in his comeback when he was Player of the Match. It will be tough for Arshdeep to stay in the XI once Pandya comes back, and more so given that India now play two series at home and then the Asia Cup. But the management needs to find a way to get him more playing time, because he is a proven wicket-taker. 

Varun Chakravarthy remains India’s most reliable spinner. His five wickets at 16.40 apiece and an economy of 6.83 were the most for India in this series and his ability to out-think batsmen across conditions remains an asset. Axar had one excellent match, taking 2/20 after his unbeaten 21 off 11 balls helped the team get to 167/8, and will no doubt fare better in Asian conditions. Washington Sundar once again chipped in with vital contributions as an allrounder, the standout being his unbeaten 49 off 23 balls to help ace a chase of 187 in Hobart, and then a to spell of 3/3 in Carrara. 

This team looks set for the World Cup and could go into the tournament on a stronger note if a couple players hit top form against South Africa and New Zealan