India’s T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav is back in domestic colours after being picked in Mumbai’s 17-man group for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, which gets under way on 26 November. All-rounder Shardul Thakur will captain a side that also features Shivam Dube, Sarfaraz Khan, Ajinkya Rahane and 21-year-old wicketkeeper Ayush Mhatre.
The recall is well-timed. India tour South Africa for five T20Is from 9 December, and the selectors want their skipper batting in the middle rather than standing on the boundary with a bib. Despite a blistering IPL – 717 runs at 167.91 – Suryakumar’s 2025 international numbers read 184 runs in 15 innings, average 15.33, strike-rate 127.77. He admitted after the Australia series, “I know the scores haven’t come, but one innings can change the conversation.”
Mumbai are defending champions after beating Madhya Pradesh last season, so the expectation is for a deep run again. Coach Omkar Salvi noted, “Having Surya around settles the dressing-room. The young lads watch how he trains – that’s priceless.”
Dube, out of India’s XI more often than in it of late, needs time in the middle as well. Six hits across the Asia Cup and Australia tour produced 76 runs from 60 balls – useful but hardly match-shaping. He said last week, “The bat feels good; I just need overs.”
Mumbai open against Railways in Lucknow, part of a group stage that feeds directly into knockout quarter-finals. Between now and the T20 World Cup co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka in February-March, India have ten home T20Is – five each versus South Africa and New Zealand – so domestic form will carry extra weight.
Former India opener Wasim Jaffer offered a broader view: “This tournament is still the quickest way to remind selectors of your name. A fifty under pressure here is worth gold.”
Squad: Shardul Thakur (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Ayush Mhatre, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Siddhesh Lad, Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Sairaj Patil, Musheer Khan, Suryansh Shedge, Atharva Ankolekar, Tanush Kotian, Shams Mulani, Tushar Deshpande, Irfan Umair, Hardik Tamore (wk).
