Suryakumar Yadav (AFP Photo)
After leading India to a memorable victory over New Zealand in the final on March 8 in Ahmedabad, Suryakumar was left out of India’s tours of Ireland and England following a prolonged lean patch. The 36-year-old, who was appointed captain of the Mumbai team for the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy by the Mumbai selectors on Monday, revealed that an honest conversation with his wife, Devisha Shetty, helped him rediscover his love for the game. “So, that’s what I started thinking about, and I am now following the same things I did 10-15 years ago. The tournament begins on November 14, with Mumbai scheduled to play their league-stage matches in Kolkata. I have always been around; I have been here for the last 16 years, and that energy and passion are still there.
MUMBAI: India’s 2026 T20 World Cup-winning captain Suryakumar Yadav has admitted that the first couple of months after he was dropped from the Indian team, following the country’s second T20 World Cup triumph, were “difficult”. However, the birth of his daughter during IPL 2026, on May 7, also made what was otherwise a challenging period “beautiful” for him. Simple,” he said. I would be very happy to take this forward, lead the team this time and win the tournament,” he said.
I am training again, following the same passion and the same love for the game. Everything is back to normal now. When you start thinking about it and focus on playing this sport, you want to do well for your team and your family. Things change completely, and that’s what I am doing right now,” he added. With Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) president Ajinkya Naik and other officials present at the event, Suryakumar made it clear that his immediate goal was to lead Mumbai to the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title. “There is still a lot to learn, and I continue to learn from all the players. There are a lot of young cricketers in the team right now. As Rajdeep sir showed in the video of Suved Parkar, Divyansh Saxena and the others, these boys are getting a platform to play domestic cricket, get recognised by IPL franchises and eventually get picked by them. I think this is a very important time for them. I would be very happy and privileged to spend time with them and play for this association. Suryakumar also stressed that young cricketers should not make playing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) their primary ambition. Instead, he believes representing Mumbai and eventually India should remain their biggest goals.
He has remained out of the national team since then, a phase that he admits has been difficult to deal with. “The main goal is what I used to think about earlier: win games for Mumbai and win the championship for Mumbai.