CRICKET: India back Suryakumar and Gill to regain mojo before T20 World Cup

NEW DELHI — India Twenty20 captain Suryakumar Yadav and his deputy Shubman Gill remain in a slump, but the team management continues to back both players to rediscover their form ahead of the home World Cup early next year.

Returning from a neck injury, opener Gill scored just four and zero in the first two T20 matches of the ongoing home series against South Africa. The right-hander has now gone 17 innings in this format without a half-century.

“I thought he got a good ball today, which can happen when you’re short on form,” assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said after Gill, who has an impressive Indian Premier League (IPL) record, fell for a first-ball duck on Thursday.

“But we also know his class. If you look at his IPL record, he stacks up 700 runs, 600 runs, 800 runs, 600 runs. We believe in his class and we believe he will come good.”

T20 specialist Suryakumar has been struggling even more. Over his last 20 innings in this format, he has scored only 227 runs at an average of 13.35, with no half-centuries.

“It’s exactly the same with Surya,” ten Doeschate added. “Personally, I think you back quality players and quality leaders like that, and they will come good. I understand that from the outside it looks like a concern, but I have absolute faith in both of them coming good at the right time for us.”

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan said the duo’s sustained poor form is “a real cause of concern for India.”

“Surya will be under pressure because he’s the captain, and as a captain your place in the playing XI is automatically secure,” Pathan told JioHotstar. “As a player, if you haven’t scored runs in a year, you are under pressure. His form needs to return before the World Cup. He needs the right batting position and better shot selection.”

India will defend their title at the T20 World Cup, which the country will co-host with Sri Lanka beginning February 7. -Amlan Chakraborty in New Delhi; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman/Reuters