'Careful...': Suryakumar Yadav's strike rate questioned by Sanjay Manjrekar before IND vs SA clash

There was a time not too long ago when runs refused to come for Suryakumar Yadav in T20Is. He looked fluent, but the numbers did not back him. Fast forward to 2026 and the story has changed.

The Indian captain has rediscovered his touch. The resurgence began in the New Zealand series and has carried into the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. His unbeaten 84 against USA at the Wankhede Stadium was a captain’s knock in every sense. India were wobbling at 77 for 6. Suryakumar shut shop, absorbed pressure, then switched gears with class. It was perhaps the best knock of the T20 World Cup 2026.

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Tilak Varma ‘told’ to bat slow, consolidate in middle overs: Suryakumar Yadav before IND vs SA match

But that innings may also have triggered a debate. As India gear up to face South Africa in the Super 8s in Ahmedabad, former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar has raised concerns about Suryakumar’s approach in the middle overs.

“There’s something I’m seeing in Suryakumar Yadav, which I’m not liking too much. 77 for 6, India against USA at Wankhede. And Suryakumar Yadav had to change his game, which he did brilliantly. Just slowed down a little bit and then exploded and got a great score, player of the match and everything. Since then, I think he’s taking that a bit too far. Against Pakistan, when India lost a couple of wickets, he really pulled down the shutters quite a lot,” Manjrekar said in a video he shared on Instagram.

Suryakumar has scored 164 runs so far in the tournament, second only to Ishan Kishan among Indian batters. But his strike rate of 136.13 stands way behind to Kishan’s blazing 202.29. Low strike rate is something that you associate Suryakumar Yadav with.

The anchor debate in modern T20 cricket

Manjrekar’s criticism is not just about one innings. He has seen a pattern, where Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube get pressure to better the run rate. Tilak Varma’s form hasn’t been inspiring as well. He has struggled throughout, especially against spinners.

“He and Tilak Varma, both playing slightly conservatively. And in the end, what happens is people like Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, and Rinku Singh are not really tapped into as resources as much. In T20 cricket, that’s a dangerous thing to do, when a senior player or a captain feels that he’s got to stay in, especially batting first,” he added.

7-10 over phase vs spin in T20 World Cup 2026

Team	Runs	Balls	Average	Strike Rate	Balls Per Boundary	Dot ball %
India	64	60	32	106.67	8.5	41.66
Others	1438	1168	38.86	123.12	7.84	31.59

Data Credit: New Indian Express

The former cricketer believes that the T20 format has moved beyond the traditional anchor role. With India boasting depth down to No. 8, including all-rounders like Axar Patel and Washington Sundar, the expectation is clear. Attack from ball one.

“When you’re setting targets of 200 plus, winning scores, if you have somebody in the top four who believes that he’s the guy who’s got to control the innings and make sure that he’s the one who’ll take India to a certain score, that is a very dangerous tactic. And considering that India have such fantastic players with Axar Patel at number eight or Washington Sundar at number eight, no batter must think like that,” said Manjrekar.

“He must trust the batters to come in after him and try and maximise returns every ball that he faces. When you have such depth in your batting, I don’t think one batter, a single batter, should play in with this feeling that he’s got to control the innings. That is the danger where you’ll bat first and just not get enough runs on the board because you’ve just played too conservatively and there are wickets in hand, but you’ve not used your resources, and you’ve just got 180 runs against a strong chasing team. So, Surya has got to be careful about that,” he added.

It is a fair point, especially in a tournament where team strike rates tell their own story. India’s overall strike rate in this World Cup sits at 148.75, behind New Zealand and South Africa. In an era where 200 is becoming par, every dot ball is criticked. Teams have stranglehold India’s batting with spin. The pitches have offered some assistance as well but the Indian batters haven’t made any favors to them as well by not dominating spin.