India’s T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav’s poor form with the bat continued, as his woes deepened further during the second T20I against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Friday, October 31.
After losing the wickets of Shubman Gill and Sanju Samson, India were counting on their captain Suryakumar to steady the innings alongside the in-form Abhishek Sharma, who has been in outstanding touch throughout the year. However, instead of sparking a recovery, Suryakumar’s slump continued as he could muster only 1 run off 4 balls.
There was a brief moment of luck when Josh Inglis dropped a catch off Josh Hazlewood on the third delivery of his innings. But the reprieve didn’t last long. On the very next ball, Hazlewood produced a peach – a back-of-a-length delivery just outside off that angled in and then seamed away – squaring Suryakumar up completely. The edge flew straight to the wicketkeeper, ending another short and forgettable outing.
Add Zee News as a Preferred Source
The Indian captain had a brief stroke of luck when Josh Inglis put down a catch off Josh Hazlewood on just the third ball of his innings. But Suryakumar couldn’t take advantage of that as Hazlewood removed him on the very next delivery, bringing a brief and disappointing innings to an end.
This was Suryakumar’s seventh single-digit score in T20Is this calendar year and he is moving closer to break Rohit Sharma’s unwanted record. Only, Rohit (8 in 2022) has registered more single-digit scores as an Indian T20I captain in a single year.
Most Single-Digit Scores For An Indian Captain In T20Is (Calendar Year):
8 – Rohit Sharma (2022)
7 – Suryakumar Yadav (2025)*
5 – Rohit Sharma (2024)
4 – Virat Kohli (2018)
Suryakumar, who is known for his consistency in T20Is despite playing risky shots, hasn’t been at his best this year. He has scored just 140 runs at an average of 14.00 in 14 T20Is in 2025, which is a big concern for India ahead of next year’s T20 World Cup.
2nd T20I: Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Marsh Guide Australia To Four Wicket-Win Over India
Josh Hazlewood dismantled India’s top order with a sensational 3-13 while skipper Mitchell Marsh hit a brisk 46 as Australia secured a four-wicket win over India in the second T20I at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday, and took a 1-0 lead in the five-match series.
Travis Head’s 28 provided early impetus, and along with Marsh’s knock, ensured that the hosts reached home in a chase of 126 with 40 balls remaining, despite a few wickets falling at the fag end. India’s bowlers did manage to inject some late drama into the contest, but it was too little, too late.
The win was set up by Hazlewood’s decisive opening spell, as he extracted seam movement, bounce, and maintained a probing length to ensure India’s innings never quite recovered from the early tatters in power-play. The rest of the bowling unit offered solid support to bowl out India for 125 in 18.4 overs, despite Abhishek Sharma top-scoring with 68.