India captain Suryakumar Yadav has addressed his and vice-captain Shubman Gill's poor form following their loss to South Africa in the 2nd T20I in Mullanpur. Gill and Yadav both got out for single digit scores as India slipped to a 51-run loss. It has been a difficult year with the bat for India's leaders, with Abhishek Sharma doing the heavy lifting at the top of the order.
"I think myself, Shubman, we could have given a good start because we can't rely on Abhishek all the time. The way he's been batting, he might have an off-day. Me, Shubman and few other batters should have taken it. I think it would have been a smart chase," Suryakumar Yadav said in the post match presentation.
India were set a tall order to chase with Quinton de Kock firing South Africa to 213. However with dew settling in, the hosts were still expected to make a chase and go 2-0 up. However, India's top order floundered and they fell way short, losing the game by 51 runs.
"But then it's okay, Shubman got out on the first ball. But yeah, I should have taken that responsibility, batted a little deeper. But yeah, as I said, we learn, we try and do better in the next game to come," Yadav added.
Suryakumar Yadav and Shubman Gill have both had a horror year in T20Is. The Indian captain once the World No.1 batter in T20Is has looked a like a shell of his former self. Surya in 19 innings averages 14 and has no fifty to his name. This is despite his record breaking IPL campaign where he managed to score more than 25 in every single game.
Gill has similarly struggled. The vice-captain averages 23.90 in his last 14 T20s without a score of above 50. His only 40+ score came at a strike rate of 120.
