Fans on social media were bewildered seeing the Indian men’s team’s tactics against Oman in the 2025 Asia Cup, as captain and best batter Suryakumar Yadav didn’t come out to bat at all in the first innings,
sending all-rounders and tailenders ahead of him.
After winning the toss and opting to bat first, India scored 188/8 in 20 overs. Suryakumar was ready and padded up when Harshit Rana and Kuldeep Yadav were in their partnership for the ninth wicket, but as the wicket didn’t fall, he didn’t get the chance to bat.
However, fans questioned why he kept him that low in the first place, with some finding it disrespectful to Oman. Commentator Vivek Razdan echoed that sentiment on air, too.
“This game shouldn’t be taken lightly. It should be given as much respect as possible. You have so many more matches to play, and your captain is still waiting to bat at number 11,” he said.
Check some of the fan reactions here:
Why Suryakumar Yadav & Gautam Gambhir trying to be oversmart? What was the need of sending Harshit Rana ahead of Suryakumar Yadav? What are they trying to achieve with this move?
— Vipul (@Vipul_Espeaks) September 19, 2025
Unpopular opinion.. but even after 8 wickets down if Suryakumar Yadav doesn’t walk out to bat despite being a captain, then I feel it is kinda disrespectful to the Oman team. Yes you want to test other batters but not even batting at No.10? C’mon. Not cool. #AsiaCup
— Anuj Nitin Prabhu (@APTalksCricket) September 19, 2025
Suryakumar Yadav today pic.twitter.com/ankU9rbXlh
— Abhishek (@be_mewadi) September 19, 2025
Suryakumar Yadav didn’t come out to bat. He will directly come to shake hands with Oman players.
— Silly Point (@FarziCricketer) September 19, 2025
Suryakumar Yadav today:#IndvsOman | #IndvsOmn | #AsiaCup2025 pic.twitter.com/PzECoftW9J
— Nikhil (@Risenik) September 19, 2025
Suryakumar has never batted below number five in T20Is. Though he played as a finisher in his formative years in the IPL, number 11 was quite rare.
Initially, it seemed like a tactic to give players like Sanju Samson and Hardik Pandya — important batters who didn’t get a hit out in the first two games — a chance to go out in the middle. But as wickets kept falling, and even Arshdeep Singh and Kuldeep Yadav came before him, the doubts grew louder.
There were concerns as well, with some thinking that the Indian skipper might have picked up an injury between the toss and the innings. However, that proved false when he was seen padded up in the last over and when he eventually came out to take the field in the second innings.
