India T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav's form has been a major talking point in recent times. As the Indian team gears up for the title defence in the T20 World Cup 2026, Surya's lean run in the T20Is has been a major worrying sign.
The India captain has not been able to score big runs in recent times, and the same happened during the first T20I between India and South Africa at the Barabati Stadium, Cuttack, on Tuesday, December 9.
SKY hit a four and a brilliant six on consecutive balls in the third over after India were asked to bat first, but fell on the fourth ball of the over off Lungi Ngidi. The skipper clipped one over square leg for a four and then flicked another one for a huge six before perishing on a similar shot.
SKY looked to chip a good length ball off Ngidi but top-edged it to mid-on, where South Africa skipper Aiden Markram grabbed the catch. The Indian skipper went back for 12 from 11 balls as the lean run continued.
Surya's lean run in 2025 continues
Suryakumar's lean run in the format continues in 2025. He has not been able to hit a single fifty-plus score, with his highest being the unbeaten 47 he made against Pakistan in their first of the three face-offs in the Asia Cup.
Surya has scored just 196 runs in 16 innings in 2025, with his runs coming at an average of just 15.07. Surya's strike rate has also taken a dip, with his 196 runs coming at 126.45. With minimum of 50 runs scored by Indian players in T20Is in 2025, Surya's average is the worst.
Indian batters with the worst average in 2025 in T20Is (min 50 runs):
1 - Suryakumar Yadav: 196 runs at an average of 15.07
2 - Sanju Samson: 185 runs at an average of 18.50
3 - Axar Patel: 139 runs at an average of 19.85
4 - Shivam Dube: 159 runs at an average of 22.71
5 - Hardik Pandya: 160 runs at an average of 22.85
