Before their Super 8 match in the T20 World Cup 2026 against South Africa, India captain Suryakumar Yadav acknowledged the pressure of playing a big tournament at home, particularly with ongoing public expectations and the common objective of winning the World Cup.
Suryakumar stated at the pre-match news conference prior to the Super 8 match against South Africa in Ahmedabad that although pressure is inevitable, every player manages it differently.
According to him, the team is committed to remaining in the moment and keeping things straightforward while learning from difficult situations, such as the “wake-up call” they got during the league stage versus the USA.
“Very difficult to say that there is no pressure or it is easy to handle. But yeah, when you are playing such a big event at your home soil, you definitely feel pressure. It is not that you can run away from it because you meet so many people in the hotel when you are travelling. The same goal to win the World Cup, we have to do well. So, yes, of course, there is pressure,” ANI quoted Surya as saying.
“But yeah, at the same time, every individual has a different plan to deal with it. How do you want to take it forward, that is in your hands. But we are trying our best to keep it simple. It is easy to say that we have to keep it simple. But we are trying our best to be in present, try to keep our feet where we are. Like for example, when we were playing the league stage, we got a good wake-up call when we played against US,” the Indian captain added.
“So, since then, we have not been thinking about too much like how we start our Super 8 campaign from tomorrow. Think about tomorrow, then take one step at a time. But yeah, of course, there is pressure, there will be pressure. If there is no pressure, there won’t be any fun in playing this game,” he said further
In addition, Suryakumar expressed his opinion that the toss is a little overrated, pointing out that numerous teams have won the toss and decided to bat first at various venues throughout the T20 World Cup 2026. Despite losing three of four tosses and always starting first, he thinks that if a team scores a high total, they can still defend it, even with dew, as long as the bowling unit is confident.
“What I feel is. toss is a little bit overrated now. If you see this tournament also, a lot of teams are winning the toss and also batting first at different venues. We got to bat first in all four games. I think I lost three tosses from four. So, if you bat well in the first innings, even if there is dew, you still have an opportunity to go out and defend if you have confidence in your bowling unit. I don’t think toss will matter a lot. But still, we will see tomorrow what we want to do,” the Indian captain said.
Notably, after defeating Pakistan, the Netherlands, the United States, and Namibia in the league round, India advanced undefeated to the Super 8 stage. South Africa came with a flawless record as well, having won all four of their group-stage games.
