Suryakumar Yadav Lets Youngsters Lift Trophy After Series Win Against Australia

Suryakumar Yadav is the latest name to be introduced as India’s captain in the shortest format. Despite being new in the business, Surya seems to be well acquainted with the best qualities required to lead and inspire a young unit.

The senior members of the Indian squad were not part of the bilateral series, which started a few days after the ICC ODI World Cup. In the absence of regular captain Rohit Sharma, Surya was appointed as an interim skipper. The middle-order batter succeeded in the task as India secured a dominant 4-1 victory in the five-match series. While every player of the team deserves credit for the triumph, Surya has earned plaudits for a particular gesture at the award ceremony.

The series was wrapped up after India secured a narrow 6-run win over Australia in the fifth T20I at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Sunday.

Being the winning captain, Suryakumar Yadav got the privilege to be presented with the trophy. He took some moments to pose for the camera and then went straight to his teammates. The 33-year-old smilingly handed the trophy to the young members of the team like Rinku Singh and Jitesh Sharma, allowing them to celebrate the victory from the front.

This tradition was started by former Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni after his team won the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007. His successors like Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya have also been spotted doing the same earlier on several occasions. Abhishek Nayar, who was performing commentary on the fifth T20I, referred to the similarity as well.

Overwhelmed by Suryakumar Yadav’s gesture, Nayar said on JioCinema, “It’s good to see this tradition continuing. Suryakumar Yadav has handed over the trophy to Rinku Singh and Jitesh Sharma. They are, I think, calling the support staff now.”

The Indian youngsters, who featured in the Australia series could well and truly demonstrate their quality. Opener Ruturaj Gaikwad has finished as the highest run-scorer. The 26-year-old has recorded a total of 223 runs in five matches including a half-century and a ton.

It was also a worth-remembering series for Ravi Bishnoi. The 23-year-old spinner has picked 9 wickets, which is the most by any Indian bowler in a bilateral T20I series. Ravichandran Ashwin achieved the same feat against Sri Lanka in 2016. Suryakumar Yadav has also played his part. The middle-order batter has scored 144 runs including a fifty in the first match.