Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin known as someone who calls a spade a spade called the axing of Suryakumar Yadav from India’s T20I side as a “landmark day in selection”.
He was apprehensive that this may set a “precedent” for the future selection calls. Ashwin said Suryakumar who led India to their third T20 World Cup title just three months ago, should have been given more time to prove himself as a batter instead of being dropped from India’s T20I side altogether.
“I think it’s a very interesting precedent… just the whole, the way it’s been done, I’m a little apprehensive about the whole thing,” Ashwin said on ESPNcricinfo’s video show.
“I have no doubts with regards to that. But this is quite a landmark day in selection. Because this will be taken as some sort of a precedent when the next time such a thing ever comes up. “… I’m just putting myself in Surya’s shoes and thinking about it. ‘Okay, sure, my batting form has let me down over the last 18 months or 15 months or whatever it is. I haven’t been in the prime form that I could have been. But then I managed to win a T20 World Cup for the country’.”
Suryakumar had a forgettable T20 World Cup, scoring 242 runs at a strike rate of 136.72, and couldn’t regain form in the IPL for Mumbai Indians, scoring 270 runs at 147.54.
“Didn’t have the greatest of great World Cups as a batter but surely, just like everyone else in the team — the coach, the vice-captain, the best-performing batter, the best-performing bowler — he’s also quite been the best-performing skipper, right? He’s played his part.
“Can we put big stalwarts in his shoes? Has there been an instance where a captain who’s won the T20 World Cup has been left out without any ultimatum? I’m sure there’s been communication,” said Ashwin, who retired from international cricket in 2024.
The national selectors on Saturday appointed Shreyas Iyer as Suryakumar’s successor, despite not playing a T20I for India for more than two years. Iyer, however, enjoyed success in the IPL, leading Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to the title in 2024 and then taking Punjab Kings (PBKS) to the final in 2025.
“Very recently, we had this conversation on Shreyas Iyer deserving to get into the T20 side. I’m all for that. But I’m again, wondering… If I am one of the other 14 members in that T20 World Cup-winning side, I’m looking at one another and saying, ‘hey, we’ve been here for a while now. Haven’t we done enough to warrant a position as a captain?’
“The one thing that’s probably worked in favor for Shreyas is that he’s won an IPL as a skipper for KKR. I wouldn’t put any black mark on the fact that he’s been a wonderful captain in the IPL. He’s got a lot of tactics right. But, that said, there are team ethos that need to be well in place and well in mark. Axar Patel was the big choice as a vice-captain.
“And if the choice of vice-captain cannot step up into being the next captain, then we are going back in time and again, questioning those sort of things.”
