Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin believes Suryakumar Yadav should not be written off despite his omission from the national T20I side, insisting the door must remain open for experienced players who rediscover their form.
Suryakumar captained India to the 2026 T20 World Cup and the 2025 Asia Cup title, but was replaced by Shreyas Iyer following a dip in batting returns. India have since endured a horrific run, suffering successive T20I series defeats to Ireland and England, with a combined scoreline of 6-0 after seven T20Is in the UK.
Speaking on his YouTube channel Ash Ki Baat, Ashwin said Suryakumar could force his way back into the side through strong performances in domestic cricket and the IPL, although he admitted the manner of his exit
makes a return uncertain.
“Where is he going to play? If he shows good form in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, he can make a comeback, why not? Captaincy is difficult right now. He should make a comeback as a batter. He has two tournaments now. He needs to perform in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and then in the IPL. We cannot close the door on anyone. But the way he was removed from the team, I really doubt it.”
There’s indeed a space for Suryakumar in the current playing 11. The problem in England and Ireland was a lack of adjustment from players against spinners and a glut of left-handers in the batting order, both issues which the Mumbai Indians vice-captain would solve, in theory.
But as Ashwin said, Suryakumar will need to put up some extraordinary performances on the domestic circuit or the IPL to make the selectors rethink their call. Moreover, it was new skipper Shreyas who replaced Suryakumar, but the latter won’t just be able to do a straightforward swap again.
He’ll need to show that he’s good enough for a role at number three (Ishan Kishan’s spot at the moment) or number five (Tilak Varma’s spot).
