On Monday, Suryakumar Yadav entered the press conference room in Dubai long after midnight. The night had been filled with turmoil and mayhem. Who would hand over the Asia Cup trophy to India? If it came from Mohsin Naqvi, the chairman of the ACC, would India accept it? Given the allegations that their squad bus had already departed, will Pakistan even show up for their news conference? By and by, we had the answers.
Suryakumar had a bad tournament, and his form might have suffered as a result of the non-cricketing problems.
In India’s second match of the competition, against Pakistan, he scored an undefeated 47; nevertheless, he finished the Asia Cup with scores of 0, 5, 12, and 1. His dismissal on Sunday while trying to put Shaheen Shah Afridi on the up put India in a vulnerable position as they chased 147 at 10 for 2.
Suryakumar remarked, “I feel I am out of runs, but I am not out of form.” “I have greater faith in my preparation and what I am doing in the nets. Thus, during games, everything happens automatically.
However, he has a perfect record as captain. He has won series against England, South Africa, and Sri Lanka after taking over as full-time T20I captain. Most recently, India won the Asia Cup after winning seven straight games.
After responding to the question about his form, Suryakumar jokingly turned the microphone around, encouraging reporters to aim some of their questions at Abhishek Sharma, the Player of the Tournament who was seated next to him. “I have experienced firsthand how challenging it is to lead the team when you are not scoring runs. However, whether or not he has scored runs, Surya bhai remains the same,” Abhishek stated, supporting his captain.
“The boys took it [the controversies] in their stride. Since day one, I was just telling them to focus on cricket and enjoy the game” – Suryakumar Yadav
At the Asia Cup, Suryakumar had to deal with more than simply cricket. During the captains’ press conference, it started with a standard handshake with Mohsin Naqvi, the head of the Asian Cricket Council and PCB. This gesture swiftly became controversial and set the tone for the rest of the event.
The problem was rekindled a few days later when Suryakumar refused to shake hands with Pakistan captain Salman Agha during the September 14 toss. The match referee was eventually forced to step in for disciplinary proceedings after a succession of gestures and altercations from both sides.
“I feel it was not that difficult [to deal with],” stated Suryakumar.
“The lads handled it calmly. I’ve been telling them to concentrate on cricket and have fun since day one. The boys viewed it favourably. We gave every game our full attention.
Despite everything that transpired, Suryakumar emphasised that there was a greater sense of satisfaction with India’s position leading up to the T20 World Cup, where they are the reigning champions, early next year.
“What we wanted to achieve in this tournament, we have achieved,” he stated. “A bilateral competition does not allow you to accomplish many things. It resembled a knockout competition.
“I told the players that we should treat the Super Four like a quarterfinal, semifinal, and final as soon as we got there. We then faced Sri Lanka in a semi-final match, and the final was flawless. It was a flawless final, yet there are pressures, responsibilities, and nerves.
In an unusually lengthy press conference, Suryakumar preferred to focus on the entire team when asked about half-centurion and Player of the Match Tilak Varma, whose name was hardly mentioned.
“I wouldn’t want to point out one player,” he stated. “Many players stepped up at pivotal times throughout the first game and the final. Tilak’s knock in the final was incredible. That’s what we’ve seen him do previously. Varun [Chakravarthy] and Kuldeep [Yadav] returned with the ball. It simply has nothing to do with the final. We have stepped up and taken advantage of little opportunities during the tournament. This was done by everyone working together.
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