“Bat Till the End”: Suryakumar Yadav Credits Gautam Gambhir for Match-Winning Calm Under Pressure
India captain Suryakumar Yadav has revealed how head coach Gautam Gambhir played a crucial calming role during a tense moment in India’s opening match of the T20 World Cup 2026 against the USA—guidance that ultimately shaped a memorable victory.
Walking in amid chaos, with India reeling at 77/6 in 12.4 overs, Suryakumar produced a captain’s knock of the highest order.
His unbeaten 84 off 49 balls, studded with 10 fours and four sixes, rescued India from a precarious position and powered the team to a competitive 161/9.
India went on to register a 29-run win, with Suryakumar rightly named Player of the Match.
“You Can Cover It Anytime”
Reflecting on the innings, Suryakumar spoke about a pivotal mid-innings conversation with Gambhir, who urged him to stay the course rather than chase quick runs.
“I always felt someone had to bat till the end. I didn’t think it was a 180–190 wicket—more like a 140 wicket,” Suryakumar said during the post-match presentation.
“But Gauti bhai told me the same thing during the break after 14 overs: ‘Just try and bat till the end; you can cover it anytime.’”
He added that his grounding in Mumbai cricket helped him read the surface and pace the innings.
“I’ve played a lot of my cricket on similar wickets—on the maidans of Mumbai—so I knew how to go about it.”
Belief Amid Pressure
The India skipper admitted the pressure was immense as wickets fell rapidly around him.
“Only I know how much pressure I was feeling at 77/6,” he said. “But I also believed I’d been in such situations before. If I could bat till the end, I knew I could make a difference.”
He acknowledged lessons from the innings as well. “We could have batted a little smarter—small partnerships could have taken us to 160 earlier.
But that’s okay. We have time before the next game, and we’ll come back stronger.”
From Caution to Command
Suryakumar arrived at the crease in the sixth over and endured a testing start, scoring just 7 off his first 13 balls as the USA kept striking.
His momentum shifted after a couple of boundaries off Shubham Ranjane, who also dropped him in the same over—a costly miss.
From there, Suryakumar built his innings with poise, reaching his half-century in 36 balls before unleashing a blistering finish.
The final over saw him plunder 21 runs off Saurabh Netravalkar, who ended with 0/65, the most expensive figures in T20 World Cup history.
Record-Setting Captaincy Debut
The innings etched Suryakumar’s name into the record books: it was the second-highest score by an India captain in T20 World Cup history and the second-highest on captaincy debut, behind Chris Gayle’s iconic 88 against Australia in 2009.
Calm counsel, unshakeable belief, and a fearless finish—Suryakumar Yadav’s knock was not just a rescue act, but a statement of leadership.
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