Dig at Rohit Sharma? Gautam Gambhir hails Suryakumar Yadav as best-ever leader

Suryakumar Yadav had a brilliant start to the World Cup campaign: As the team India captain showcased all his experience in India’s opening game against the USA. After a batting collapse from India against Monaak Patel’s side, it was Surya who played as the lone warrior for the side. His unbeaten knock helped India to post a target of 162 runs on the board.

Suryakumar Yadav, in the first match, scored 84* off 49 balls, while other batters could not even cross the 30-run mark. The T20I captain has been praised by former cricketers and pundits for his exceptional innings last Sunday. Head coach Gautam Gambhir also lauded the captain after the match in the post-match dressing room talk.

Suryakumar Yadav has been key for India

After the game, Surya said that India struggled to adjust to the challenging conditions, stressing the importance of working on the batting department rather than overlooking shortcomings despite the win. However, a new video from Star Sports has come out ahead of India’s next match against Namibia. In the video, Gambhir talks about Suryakumar Yadav’s leadership qualities and his calm nature.

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Head coach Gambhir admits that Suryakumar Yadav has made his coaching in the T20I format a lot easier, and he has been exceptional as a leader on and off the field. Gauti and Surya have known each other since Kolkata Knight Riders days in the IPL, where Surya played under Gambhir’s captaincy for four seasons.

'Surya has made my life a lot easier'- Gautam Gambhir

Gambhir, while speaking on the podcast ahead of the T20 World Cup first match, via X (formerly Twitter), said, “Surya has made my life a lot easier in this format. And I think he's a phenomenal leader of men. I think he's a phenomenal leader of men, not by what he does on the cricket field, not by what kind of a batsman he is, what kind of shots he has, how many shots he has, the format he has.”

“All that is probably you can keep it aside. But the way he relates to players, the way he talks to players, the way he spends time with players, how much he's relaxed on the field. And sometimes, as a coach, you know that you can think about a lot of other things because he's going to keep the atmosphere pretty much calm, what any coach can dream of.”

Here's the video

Clear communication. Calm leadership. 👌

Gautam Gambhir applauds SKY’s captaincy and how he connects with players to make a coach’s job easier.

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— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) F<!---->e<!---->b<!---->r<!---->u<!---->a<!---->r<!---->y<!----> <!---->9<!---->,<!----> <!---->2<!---->0<!---->2<!---->6

Gambhir further added, “For me, I think Surya, the player, I can keep him aside, but Surya, a leader. For me, I think he's ticked every box, and he's just a phenomenal leader. And which has made my life a lot easier. Probably it's a great thing when you have someone like him leading the country because his heart is in the right place and he takes the right decisions, especially when things are under pressure.”

Surya found form at the right time

Suryakumar Yadav, who was struggling to get runs, had faced criticism during his off-form. However, in the New Zealand series, he showed that form is temporary, class is permanent.

He scored 242 runs, which was the most runs in the series, and won the Player of the Series award for his exceptional performance. He carried his form in the major event and helped India to get out of the struggling phase.

Also Read: Suryakumar Yadav declared superior to AB de Villiers by Gautam Gambhir's ex-teammate