'It Has Been Very Difficult': Suryakumar Yadav Opens Up on Losing India Place, Targets SMAT With Mumbai

Suryakumar Yadav captained India to a second straight T20 World Cup title, at home in March. A few months later he was out of the team. On Tuesday, at a T20 Mumbai League event in Mumbai, the 36-year-old spoke openly for the first time about how hard that has been.

"I don't want to run away from that fact"

"Post the T20 World Cup win it has been a little difficult. I don't want to run away from that fact. If you are not honest with yourself, it is very difficult to lead a happy life," Suryakumar said, as quoted by PTI.

A long run of low scores cost him his place. The selectors moved on before the England tour, and Shreyas Iyer took over as T20I captain. Iyer has since led India to a 3-2 T20I series win in New Zealand and is now captaining the ODI side for the last two games there.

According to ESPNcricinfo, Suryakumar has not played top-level cricket since the IPL, where Mumbai Indians finished second from bottom. He played the Mumbai T20 League in June and some club cricket, but was left out of Mumbai's Ranji Trophy squad because he had not had enough red-ball preparation.

Fatherhood and a talk at home

Suryakumar said becoming a father helped. "During the IPL, I was blessed with a baby girl in May. The focus shifted completely towards her. The last few months, since she was born, have been very beautiful," he said. "The first two months, though, were very difficult."

He then went back to how he started. He said a conversation with his wife, Devisha Shetty, was the turning point: she told him to find the love and passion for the game he had as a 15-year-old who wanted to play age-group cricket for Mumbai.

"I am now following the same things I did 10-15 years ago. I am training again, following the same passion and the same love for the game. Everything is back to normal now," he said.

Next stop: Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

Suryakumar has been named Mumbai captain for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, India's domestic T20 competition, which starts on Saturday, 14 November. Mumbai play all their games in Kolkata. "The main goal is what I used to think about earlier: win games for Mumbai and win the championship for Mumbai," he said.

He also had advice for young players. "I feel the end goal, or even the first goal, should never be to think about playing in the IPL. Everyone dreams of playing for India," he said, stressing the value of age-group and domestic cricket.

Can he force his way back?

With 113 T20I appearances, Suryakumar has the record to get back in. What he has not had lately is match time. SMAT is India's main domestic T20 event before the next IPL season, so runs for Mumbai in Kolkata are the clearest way to remind selectors what he can do. You can follow his numbers on our Suryakumar Yadav player page.

Sources: PTI via The Indian Express, The Hindu and India Today; ESPNcricinfo; Hindustan Times.