Suryakumar Yadav, who recently led the India national cricket team to a historic triumph in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, has admitted that while he dreams of playing Test cricket, the shortest format remains where he feels most comfortable.

Speaking in an interview with PTI, the Indian captain reflected on his journey across formats, his love for red-ball cricket, and why T20 cricket has ultimately become his natural space.

Still dreams of playing Test cricket

“…what is written in your life, you get that only. I started with red-ball cricket itself, played Ranji Trophy for 10-12 years. I played a lot of red-ball cricket in Bombay because if you grow up in Bombay, you start with red ball itself, so everything is around red ball,” he said.

“But gradually, when we started playing white ball cricket, the inclination shifted a bit towards that. And after that, I came to this format (T20). I also tried a lot in One-Day cricket to play well in it, but nothing happened there,” he said.

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“T20 mein jaisa chal raha tha, usme apna haath set ho gaya hai, aisa bol sakte hain” (The way T20 was working out for me, I had become good at it; you can say that),” he said.

ODI cricket never worked for him

While Suryakumar has thrived in T20 cricket, he admitted that the 50-over format never quite suited his game.

“I feel that as much as I have experienced ODI cricket closely and I have seen it, it is a format where you have to bat in three different ways. Sometimes if you go in early, if wickets fall quickly, then you have to bat like Test cricket.

“Then you have to bat with a good strike rate like a One Day and then later at the end of the innings, you have to bat like (you do in) T20 format. So, that is one format that I never understood. I tried my best to play it. But then it’s a challenging format,” he said.

Suryakumar last featured in an ODI during the 2023 Cricket World Cup final against Australia, where he scored 18 runs off 28 balls. India lost the final, and he has not played an ODI since then.

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ODI cricket still has its charm

The Indian captain recalled the incredible atmosphere during the 2023 ODI World Cup, saying the tournament showed that the format still holds a unique appeal.

Suryakumar also recalled the emotion that the format managed to stir during the 2023 World Cup.

“…when I was with the team for the 2023 ODI World Cup and I played, then that vibe, the whole atmosphere of that format, the build-up going into the final. That was completely different than what we played in 2026 and 2024 T20 World Cup.

“So, it’s charm is different, ODI cricket also has a different charm, T20 has a different one,” he explained.