T20 WORLD CUP | It’s all down to ‘Indian mentality’, says Suryakumar
The Hindu
Suryakumar Yadav highlights India's evolving mentality and strong momentum as they head into the 2026 T20 World Cup.
Never has a team entered a men’s T20 World Cup — a format as fickle as the weather — as clear favourites as India in 2026. Captain Suryakumar Yadav attributed it to a fundamental shift in approach, describing it as the emergence of the “Indian mentality”.
“This is the Indian mentality. We have been playing some good brand of cricket for the last two-three years, but we have changed our thinking,” Suryakumar said during the pre-tournament captains’ media interaction here on Thursday.
“Earlier, we used to play bilateral (series) differently than the ICC tournaments, but now, be it an ICC event or (the) Asia Cup or even a bilateral (match), we try to play in the same manner.
“This is why, when we went to play the 2024 T20 World Cup, it did not feel any different. It felt like we have been playing this way for an entire year.
“Even now, the kind of cricket we have been playing for the last year, we will try to play the same way (in the T20 World Cup). And if we play well, the result will also be on our side.”
India's captain Suryakumar Yadav, front left, and others during the fifth and final T201 cricket match between India and New Zealand, at the Greenfield International Stadium, in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, Saturday, Jan. 31, 2026. | Photo Credit: PTI
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