'We were having a lot of nerves': Suryakumar Yadav's candid confession on India's T20 World Cup campaign

Suryakumar Yadav, the captain who led India to glory in the T20 World Cup 2026, attributed the team's success to a consistent and disciplined selection strategy. During a panel discussion at the 2026 BCCI Naman Awards ceremony in New Delhi, he said that the foundation of their victory was built on making minimal changes to the roster.

It's really important to stand by the players: Suryakumar Yadav

The skipper further explained that this 'settled group' philosophy was the result of two years of meticulous management. By maintaining unflinching trust in a core set of players, the leadership team created an environment where players felt secure in their roles, which ultimately allowed them to perform at their peak when it mattered most.

"See, it was not that difficult. I think from where we left in 2024 under Rahul sir, from then, we knew that we needed to show a lot of trust, belief in the players. Because you see, sometimes in sport, you won't be seeing good things happening around. There'll be lots of ups and downs, but then you have to show a lot of trust in players, belief in them, and that's what we wanted to do when we started that new cycle for the 2026 T20 World Cup. Since then, till the T20 World Cup came, we tried to make as few changes as we could," he said.

"When you come into a big tournament like this, I think it's really important to stand by the players who've done really well for you in the last two years. So you've got to stick with them, and we always knew that if we have created, as he always says, Gauti bhai, that we've created a super team, we've picked a super team, so let's stick to them," Suryakumar Yadav added.

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There was a lot of pressure: Suryakumar Yadav

Suryakumar noted that the team's commitment to stability faced an immediate challenge during the very first match of the tournament. In a high-pressure opening fixture at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, the Indian batting lineup suffered an unexpected collapse against the USA. This early stumble served as a major test of the squad's composure and the leadership's faith in their established system.

The Indian captain ultimately played a decisive role in steadying the ship himself. Stepping up when the team was in dire straits, Suryakumar anchored the innings with a brilliant 84, single-handedly rescuing the side from a potentially disastrous start to the campaign.

"You rightly said we were favourites going into the tournament. But at the same time, when you know that you're going to play at home, in front of your home crowd, yes, there is going to be excitement. But there was a lot of pressure. We were having a lot of nerves, and you must have seen that in the first game when we started against the USA. But there was a lot of pressure. When you play at home, there is a lot of pressure."

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The 35-year-old further emphasised that the batting unit's collective selflessness was a primary driver behind their high-scoring performances, which consistently saw the team cross the 200-run mark. He noted that the players prioritized aggressive, team-oriented goals over individual caution, creating a relentless scoring pressure that often overwhelmed their opponents. In particular, the captain singled out Sanju Samson for his exceptional commitment to this philosophy. He highlighted Samson’s repeated willingness to sacrifice personal milestones and risk his own wicket to maintain the team's momentum.

"See, we were playing with eight batters. We always knew that someone or the other could do that job for us. But as I said, we played the same way in the last one and a half years. We tried to, whenever we got an opportunity, we tried to bat the side out.

"I think all the batters took their responsibilities. They didn't think about their personal milestones at 49s, 90s. If you had seen Sanju play, he got two 89s and one 97. He could have easily gotten a 100, but then he knew what responsibility he had towards the team and went for it. But all the batters had their own responsibilities, chipped in with good contributions. I think that helped us pass 200, 250 sometimes," he concluded.