IND vs NZ 2026: 'He knows how to score runs' - Ex-Mumbai Indians star hails Suryakumar Yadav after return to form

Former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel has lauded Suryakumar Yadav’s resurgence in the ongoing T20I series against New Zealand, calling the India captain a “T20 legend” after a difficult run-scoring patch throughout 2025. The cricketer-turned-commentator's remarks came after the India captain rediscovered his lost form. 

Notably, Suryakumar endured a slump that stretched over 23 innings without a fifty, averaging just 13.62 in that period. However, he has now scored 179 runs in four innings,

including back-to-back half-centuries, putting him firmly back among the run-makers and near the milestone of 3,000 runs, a landmark only a handful of Indians have reached. Parthiv explained how mindset change helped the batter regain his touch.

"If you want to get back in form, you have to give yourself time. You are desperate for runs, and in that desperation, you go for your favourite shot. For Suryakumar Yadav, that is playing across the line. But when you are out of form, it doesn't come off. Once you get that form back, you can play those shots again, which he has done for a while in T20 cricket. He needed to give himself time, and he did. He looked like a completely different player in the last two games of the series against New Zealand because he took time to settle down at the crease and once he understood that, he pulled the trigger and started playing aggressively," Parthiv told via Star Sports.

The erstwhile Gujarat cricketer then observed how the 35-year-old calculated his innings smartly, avoiding any mistakes, and how that simple thing changed fortunes for the ace batter in the shortest format of the game ahead of the all-important T20 World Cup 2026.

"He knows how to score runs and take calculated risks to make big scores. He spent time at the crease in the first game, facing 22 balls. In the second game, he started with 10 runs off his first 10 deliveries, then went on to make 82. That is what confidence can do. We know Suryakumar Yadav is full of self-belief. Just one innings changed him, and he looked like a completely different player," he concluded.

Suryakumar is currently the leading run-scorer in the ongoing series with 171 runs in three innings at a staggering strike rate of over 200. The Mumbai-born also averages a staggering 89.50 in the series, with the series currently in the Men in Blue's pocket.