Suryakumar Yadav explains India’s calculated gambles in 4th T20I, open to repeating risks: ‘We might chase again’

Explaining the thinking behind India’s team combination and approach, Surya revealed that the management was keen to push the side out of its comfort zone.

India captain Suryakumar Yadav shed light on his call to bowl first after India went down in the fourth T20I against New Zealand, failing to chase a stiff 216-run target in Visakhapatnam. Winning the toss, Surya surprised many by opting to field despite expectations of batting first to counter the dew later in the evening. India stuck to their strategy of chasing, banking on conditions easing under lights.

Suryakumar Yadav's India lost the fourth T20I by 50 runs. (PTI)

The team also bolstered its bowling attack by bringing back Arshdeep Singh, replacing Ishan Kishan, who was sidelined with a niggle. However, the decision didn’t pay off as New Zealand posted a challenging total that proved beyond India’s reach.

Explaining the thinking behind India’s team combination and approach in the fourth T20I, Surya revealed that the management was keen to push the side out of its comfort zone. The Indian skipper said the decision to go in with an extra bowling option was a conscious one, aimed at testing the batting group under pressure and giving all World Cup squad members game time ahead of the marquee tournament.

"I feel we purposely played six batters today. We wanted to have five perfect bowlers and wanted to challenge ourselves. Like for example, if we're chasing 200 or 180, and we wanted to see if we were two down or three down, how does it look? But then it's fine at the end of the day. And we wanted to play all the players who are part of the World Cup squad. Otherwise, we would have played other ones," Surya said in the post-match press conference.

The Indian skipper underlined that India’s decision to chase once again was driven by a desire to test the batting group in tougher scenarios rather than play it safe. He stressed that with the World Cup approaching, the focus was on learning how the side responds under pressure while chasing big totals, even if it meant risking the result in the process.

"We've been batting really well when we've batted first. So I wanted the guys to take that responsibility if we're chasing 180 or 200, and two wickets or three wickets are down and see how we bat. So it's a good challenge. Hopefully, if we get an opportunity again, we might chase again. But at the end of the day, good learning," he added.

“One batter with Shivam Dube would have made a lot of difference”

Reflecting on where the chase slipped away, Suryakumar pointed to the lack of sustained partnerships despite the dew making conditions favourable for batting. He felt the platform was there for a strong finish, but admitted that one solid stand alongside Shivam Dube could have swung the momentum and changed the outcome of the game.

"With the heavy dew, I think one or two partnerships here and there, like the way Dube batted, one batter with him would have made a lot of difference at the end of the game. I think 50 runs, we lost by 50 runs. But it's okay. As I said, one or two partnerships like this in a run-chase like this might make a difference," he concluded.