'Hasn't scored against big teams' - Aakash Chopra on Suryakumar Yadav's form ahead of IND vs NZ final

Former Indian cricketer Aakash Chopra believes that criticism regarding Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav’s performances with the bat in the ongoing T20 World Cup have been unwarranted, as he has played some crucial knocks in the tournament.

While saying that, the former opener also observed that the batter’s performances against the top teams in the last five white-ball tournaments has not been up to the mark. 

In this World Cup, the Indian captain has scored 242 runs in eight innings at an average of 34.57 and a strike rate of 137.5. His only half-century came in India’s opening match against the USA, when he scored an unbeaten 84 to take a faltering India to 161. His 32 off 29 balls against Pakistan helped stabilise India’s innings after a few quick wickets in the middle overs.

Speaking of his other notable performances in ICC events, Suryakumar scored 68 off 40 balls in India’s five-wicket loss to South Africa in the 2022 T20 World Cup at Perth. His 53 off 28 balls came in India’s 47-run win over Afghanistan in the 2024 edition, earning him the Player of the Match award for the same.

"I think it's slightly unfair at times. The opinions have become very sharp these days, and they start deep diving also. What goes in Surya's favor is that he took India to a match-winning score, from 77/6 in the first match. The 32-run knock against Pakistan came at a run-a-ball, but it was his best knock because that was required at that stage, or else India might not have been able to bat 20 overs," Chopra said, speaking on his Youtube channel.

"However, it's true that he hasn't scored too many runs against big teams. This is his fifth World Cup. He has scored only two half-centuries against top 10 teams, one against South Africa at Perth and one against Afghanistan in the last World Cup," he added.

India take on New Zealand in the final of the 2026 T20 World Cup on Sunday, March 8.