In a significant boost for the Indian cricket team, T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav has returned to the nets for the first time since his lower right abdomen surgery. With the Asia Cup 2025 beginning on September 9, his fitness has been a major point of discussion. The Indian skipper is now in a race against time to be fully fit for the tournament.
Suryakumar Yadav hits nets ahead of Asia Cup 2025
After weeks of speculation and intensive rehabilitation, Suryakumar officially announced his return to practice at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. He posted a video on Instagram showing him batting in the nets, a major step forward in his recovery. While this has created optimism, the final decision on his availability for the Asia Cup will depend on medical clearance in the coming weeks. The tournament, which will be played in the T20I format, is crucial as it will serve as a final dress rehearsal for the ICC T20 World Cup 2026. The official squad is expected to be announced in the third week of August, and Suryakumar is now focused on proving his fitness to make the team.
Should Suryakumar not recover in time, the Indian team will need to consider alternative leadership for the Asia Cup. Potential stand-in captains include Hardik Pandya, Shubman Gill, and Sanju Samson. However, the team management is optimistic that their captain will be fully fit and ready to lead the side. To prioritize his recovery, Suryakumar recently withdrew from the Duleep Trophy 2025. Since then, he has been diligently focusing on strength-building, mobility training, and regaining match fitness at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru.
Beyond his leadership role, the 34-year-old is on the verge of setting several T20I records at the upcoming Asia Cup. With 2,598 runs and a strike rate of 167.07, he is just 402 runs shy of becoming the first-ever player to score 3,000 T20I runs while maintaining a strike rate above 160. He will likely have up to seven innings to achieve this milestone.
He also has a chance to set a new record for the most T20I centuries. Currently, he needs just one more century to equal the joint record of five held by Rohit Sharma and Glenn Maxwell. Given his form, he is expected to surpass them during the tournament. Additionally, Suryakumar is close to a six-hitting milestone. With 146 sixes to his name, he needs just four more to become the fifth player in history to hit 150 T20I sixes, a feat he could accomplish in the very first game.
As far as Asia Cup 2025 is concerned, which will be played in a T20I format, it will be played from September 9 to 28 in the UAE. The Men in Blue will kick off their campaign against UAE on September 10, followed by a high-octane clash against Pakistan on September 14. Their final group-stage game is against Oman on September 19. If India finishes in the top two of their group, they will advance to the Super Fours stage, where they will play three more matches. A strong performance in the Super Fours could see them qualify for the final on Sunday, September 28.