Suryakumar Yadav has one of the most inspiring stories in Indian cricket, rising from making his national team debut at age 30 to being named India’s T20I captain just three years later. In the latest episode of Deep Point on Star Sports, experts Sanjay Manjrekar and Sanjay Bangar analysed Yadav’s status as India’s best T20I batter and what he can achieve as India’s T20I captain. Sanjay Manjrekar wholeheartedly backed SKY as the best T20I batter in India, highlighting his incredible rise through the IPL to the player he is today. 

“This has taken a lot of time; it didn’t happen in just two years. He used to play for KKR (Kolkata Knight Riders), and I remember he had just two shots. Predictably, he would play the flick shot on the first ball of the innings, no matter where it landed. The growth of Suryakumar Yadav is incredible. Who would have predicted, when he was playing lower down the order for KKR, that he would go on to become the best T20I batter in the world?”

Sanjay Bangar explained how the 34-year-old batter’s ability is enhanced by his imagination and adaptability. 

“The method to this madness is proactiveness. It takes a lot of imagination, courage, and the ability to anticipate where the ball is coming from before it’s even bowled-that’s his hallmark. During the Asia Cup, we analysed how, when bowlers try to adjust their deliveries after Surya gets into position, he still has another option to punish them. That’s his special ability. There are many players who can hit across 360 degrees, but his ability to abandon his plan and react to a delivery is amazing.”

Regarding Yadav’s captaincy, Bangar admitted his surprise at Hardik Pandya being dropped but suggested that Yadav might be the ideal leader for India’s next generation of T20 talent. 

“Honestly, I was shocked that he was elevated to captain because, until that point, Hardik Pandya was the captain-designate. The way he handled that transition shows his great man-management skills. It’s still early days, but he’s the best fit for this young squad after the retirements of Jadeja, Kohli, and Rohit. That’s a big plus-he can be the leader of this new generation, someone who is one among them.”

India have secured 16 wins and four losses in T20Is under Suryakumar Yadav’s captaincy. His status as the team’s best player is what makes Manjrekar believe he is the perfect choice to continue leading them. “He has a great temperament. Throughout his career, you can see that after a strong innings, he always has a smile during his interviews. He’s light-hearted. Just like Bumrah for India’s Test captaincy, SKY is by far the best player on this T20I team.”

Manjrekar also emphasized the importance of strong coaching support for Yadav’s captaincy.

“In T20Is, if you have a great coach working alongside the captain, because you need outside inputs, I think he could be a great long-term leader. I’m very excited to see if he has any say in team selection because I’m looking forward to watching players like Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson, Rinku Singh making a comeback, and even Varun Chakravarthy getting a chance.”

Sanjay Bangar was a ringside witness to Virat Kohli’s peak as an international cricketer between 2014 to 2019 and it was hardly surprising to find the former India batting coach being summoned by the star for a special net session ahead of his Ranji Trophy comeback after more than 12 years. Following the BCCI’s diktat to all centrally contracted cricketers to be available for domestic cricket, Kohli, who has been struggling for form, will be playing in Delhi’s last league game against Railways at the Kotla from January 30.

Kohli’s national team colleagues like skipper Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja all fulfilled their ‘SOP duty’ by playing the just- concluded round of Ranji Trophy.

Among the stars, only Jadeja (12 wickets, 38 runs) and Gill (second innings 102) enjoyed fruitful outings.

For Kohli, 190 runs in 9 complete knocks in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy raised serious question marks about his future in international cricket. The 36-year-old has been dealing with technical issues against deliveries on and outside the off-stump channel with a similar pattern of dismissals.

If one speaks to knowledgeable people in the Indian cricket circuit, they would tell you about the comfort level that Kohli used to share with batting coach Bangar during their five years in the national team.

Between 2014 to 2019, Kohli has scored the bulk of his 80 international hundreds and since the end of Bangar’s tenure, he has made only two Test centurion in the last five years.

Bangar had to move on from the national team after the 2019 ODI World Cup as Vikram Rathour was roped in as the batting coach.

“When Kohli’s feedback was sought post 2019 World Cup, he had given a glowing certificate to Bangar, stating that as a batter, he had benefitted a lot from his technical inputs during all those years,” a senior BCCI official, who was then associated with the appointment of support staff, told PTI.

That Kohli always trusted Bangar’s inputs was evident when post his stint with Indian team, he got associated with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, a franchise where the former Indian captain’s view points carry a lot of weight.

Focus on backfoot play

Kohli missed the last round of Ranji Trophy due to a “neck sprain” and in his bid to get his rhythm back, he called Bangar, who arranged for a training session, which is believed to be off proper Mumbai city limits. It is a facility which has been personally developed by the former India all-rounder and Railways skipper.

Bangar was seen feeding Kohli with throwdown from 16 yards with focus on playing the rising deliveries on the backfoot. A portable cement slab (with attached wheels) was placed at the back of length (mid-pitch between 8-10m length) to feed the batter with back of length deliveries that rise steeply.

The idea for such a training session is to develop the backfoot play and also create more range square of the wicket.

Kohli is a compulsive front-foot player with a propensity to play the cover-drive and over the years, the backfoot play took a backseat.

Ahead of the Ranji Trophy match, the idea was to ensure that even if he doesn’t get too many pitched-up drivable length deliveries, he can still rock back and hit shots square of the wicket.

Over the years, if one revisits Kohli’s wagon wheel, one wouldn’t find too many square cuts or square drives — two staple shots for batter when they rock back to deliveries bowled at back of length and on the channel outside the off-stump.

For someone with a tough mental make-up, it won’t be very difficult to create a new range of strokes for himself.

DDCA expecting around 10,000 spectators

The Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) officials have made arrangements where at least 10,000 fans can watch the match with two stands being opened for the general public.

As usual, the entry would be free as it has been for all of Delhi’s home matches at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground for all these years.

“There has never been any entry fee charged for watching Ranji matches and the same custom would follow. The only thing is that two stands will be opened for the fans as we understand the level of excitement associated with Virat’s participation,” a senior official said.

File photo of Yuvraj Singh© AFP

File image of KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant.© AFP

India captain Rohit Sharma‘s hunger for playing Test cricket might be there but it isn’t being seen in his actions. The skipper produced one of his most woeful performances on an away tour as India succumbed to a 1-3 defeat against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Rohit’s below-par performances with the bat saw him even being benched for the final match in Sydney. While the 37-year-old has maintained that he intends to continue playing Test cricket, former India cricketer Sanjay Bangar wants the commitment to be reflected in his actions.

Rohit has been advised by many, including India coach Gautam Gambhir, to play Ranji Trophy, though there’s no confirmation on the same by him. Bangar, in a chat on Star Sports, reminded Rohit that even the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane – sidelined from India’s Test team – have shown hunger for red-ball cricket by consistently playing the Ranji Trophy.

“When you are 37 years old, every failure hurts because a cricketer is a very proud person. When he sees the kind of performances he’s had in the past but can’t replicate them, and when young players are performing well, these factors weigh heavily on his mind. This might have influenced his decision. He needs to determine whether he still has the hunger to play Test cricket. If he does, that hunger must reflect in his actions,” Bangar said.

“There’s been a lot of talk about playing domestic cricket. Players like Pujara and Rahane, who are on par with Rohit Sharma in stature, have been dropped in the past but have shown their hunger by playing in domestic cricket. Even today, they are sweating it out on domestic grounds, which is a big drop from the intensity of international cricket. Rohit has expressed his desire to continue playing for India and has said,” I am not going anywhere; I still want to play.’ If he follows through and performs in domestic cricket, no one can stop him. But that form and hunger must be evident,” he added.

Bangar also criticised the Indian team management for being reactive and not proactive in the selection of players.

“Nitish Reddy’s unexpected performance put the team in a dilemma. The combination of Nitish Reddy with Washington Sundar or Ravindra Jadeja created confusion. When there is an in-form player, it’s hard to drop him. The team management seemed to react as the series progressed rather than being proactive. On those pitches, decisions should have been made based on the immediate requirements. A more proactive approach could have resulted in better team combinations,” he asserted.

Former Indian all-rounder Sanjay Bangar hailed wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant’s scintillating half-century against Australia at Sydney, saying that the 27-year-old’s “bravery” has put India in a position from which India can win the Test match and draw the series. Pant scored his fifty in just 29 balls during day two of the Test match at Sydney. The half-century came after a frustrating wait to convert his fine starts into something more meaningful that lasted four Test matches. However, he lost his wicket to Aussie skipper Pat Cummins and India ended at 141/6, with a lead of 145 runs.

Speaking on Star Sports, Bangar lauded Pant for tackling pacers Mitchell Starc’s swing and Scott Boland’s length well during his knock.

“The kind of bravery that Rishabh Pant portrayed with his bat, that is the only reason I think that India is in a position where we are still thinking that we can win this match. If you keep this innings aside, the way he played, the calculative risks that he took, the way he played those shots, because Mitchell Starc’s deliveries swing in when the ball gets a bit old so he played the shots towards the square-leg. Scott Boland who hits the length, he stepped out and played him, where there was no fielder in the point region he played those cut shots.”

Bangar said that it was a “composed innings” and hailed Pant for his diversity, having played a hard-fought knock of 40 in 98 balls, with three fours and a six in the first innings and endured plenty of blows to the body.

“So it was quite a composed innings, it was not that he came out and started playing shots without even thinking anything about it. When he plays like this, he has shown that he is quite diverse and you also expect that when a player has played 40-45 test matches, the way he played in the first innings where he took those blows on his body, sometimes you will have to play like that and you’ll have to respect the conditions. And today situation of the match was such that a strategy a was put in place where he played counter-attacking innings and it is quite pleasant to watch when he plays those counter-attacking innings,” he concluded.

During the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy, Pant has not been at his absolute best but still made 255 runs in five matches and nine innings at an average of 28.33, and a strike rate of 59.02, with one half-century. He has been unable to convert the most of his starts during the series into big knocks. He is the sixth-highest run-getter in the series.

Coming to the match, India won the toss and elected to bat first. India was off to a disappointing start yet again as the top order threw away their wickets, especially Virat Kohli (17) who continued his struggles with outside off-stump deliveries.

However, the fight by Pant (40 in 98 balls, with three fours and a six), Ravindra Jadeja (26 in 95 balls, with three fours) and skipper Jasprit Bumrah (22 in 17 balls, with three fours and a six) pushed India to 185/10 in 72.2 overs.

Boland (4/31) was the pick of the bowlers for the Aussies and once again a thorn in the eyes of Indian batters. Mitchell Starc took 3/49 while Pat Cummins got 2/37.

In their first innings, Australia lost wickets at regular intervals even when Jasprit Bumrah (2/33) walked off the field due to an injury scare. Under the stand-in skipper Virat, India continued to dominate the Aussies, skittling them out for just 181 runs and taking a four-run lead. Debutant Beau Webster (57 in 105 balls, with five fours) had a fine showing with the bat and Steve Smith (33 in 57 balls, with four boundaries and a six) showed some attacking intent.

Prasidh Krishna (3/42) and Mohammed Siraj (3/51) were the top bowlers for India.

In their second innings, despite a promising start by Yashasvi Jaiswal (22 in 35 balls, with four boundaries) and KL Rahul (13), Indian batters fell to trap of Boland’s (4/42) impressive lines and lengths, with KL, Shubman Gill (13), Virat (6), Nitish Kumar Reddy (8) falling cheaply to consolidate Australia’s position in the match. At the end of the day, India made 141/6, with Jadeja (8*) and Sundar (6*).

Former India head coach Sanjay Bangar believes that the Boxing Day Test at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) is the perfect opportunity for Virat Kohli to rise to the occasion and reestablish himself as the fulcrum of India’s batting lineup. With the Border-Gavaskar Trophy locked at 1-1, this match is crucial for India’s hopes of clinching the series and solidifying their chances of reaching the World Test Championship (WTC) final. Kohli’s form has been a mixed bag in the ongoing series. While his century in Perth played a pivotal role in India’s victory, his performances in the other matches have been underwhelming.

With just 126 runs across six innings at an average of 30, Kohli has failed to maintain consistency. Excluding his Perth hundred, he has scored only 26 runs in five innings.

Speaking to Star Sports, Bangar highlighted the technical challenges Kohli has faced, particularly with deliveries outside the off-stump. Australian bowlers have effectively targeted this weakness, forcing Kohli to make errors. However, the former Indian cricketer stressed that patience and a calm approach at the crease could be Kohli’s antidote to these struggles.

“Sometimes you need to keep your status as a batter in control a little. When you surrender slightly to the game, spend a little time, ease out in the middle for some time, wait for the bowler to come to you, and do not go yourself towards the bowler, that’s the sign of a big player,” Bangar said.

The MCG offers Kohli a stage that has been kind to him in the past. With 316 runs at an average of 52.66 at this venue, Kohli has fond memories, including a majestic 169-run knock in the Boxing Day Test of 2014. The conditions in Melbourne – famed for offering bounce and carry – align with Kohli’s strengths, making this match a golden chance for him to rediscover his form.

Bangar added that Kohli needs to focus on playing deliveries close to his front pad, a method that could help him regain rhythm and fluency. “Play as many balls as possible close to your front pad and then the runs will flow. It’s not that he hasn’t scored runs; he scored a century three innings ago.

“Virat’s role in this high-stakes encounter could be the difference-maker. He has done it before at the MCG, and there is no reason why he can’t do it again,” Bangar pointed out.

The draw in Gabba Test showcased India’s resilience, but it also underlined the batting woes of experienced players like Kohli and captain Rohit Sharma. With the series evenly poised, a strong batting performance in Melbourne is critical. Kohli, in particular, will need to lead from the front to set the tone for the rest of the lineup in Melbourne.

Making the most of his elevated batting role in the Indian team, KL Rahul hit 84 runs off 139 balls to lay the foundation of India’s fightback against Australia at the Gabba. While others like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, and Yashasvi Jaiswal gave away their wickets for cheap, Rahul showed the right mindset and attitude to deal with Australia’s pace attack. Eventually, it was a heroic catch by Steve Smith, on the bowling of spinner Nathan Lyon that forced Rahul to head back to the pavilion.

Rahul might have missed out on a first-innings ton but his effort gave India hope of survival in the match. As Rahul departed, experts like Irfan Pathan, Sanjay Bangar, and Cheteshwar Pujara doffed their hat to the opening batter.

“KL showed that if you apply yourself, if you bat well, it’s a good pitch where you can score runs. It’s not a very difficult pitch where you can’t survive or where you can’t bat. So, yeah, I mean it’s just about seeing through that new ball and KL showed that today,” said Pujara.

“If you need runs overseas please call @klrahul,” tweeted Pathan.

If you need runs overseas please call @klrahul

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) December 17, 2024

“He left a lot of deliveries outside off stump and making the bowlers do something different. He wasn’t really going towards the ball, and whenever he flashed hard outside that off-stump, he flashed hard. So, all in all, a terrific innings from him, and for me, I think he is the standout performer with the bat with both teams, because he’s been negotiating the new ball so well. His judgment outside off stump has been impeccable and his example should inspire the remaining Indian batters to sort of imbibe these qualities in their own individual game plan,” said Bangar.

Despite Rahul’s brilliant show with the bat, India are unlikely to overhaul Australia’s first innings total in Brisbane.

Sanjay Bangar has hailed young batter Yashasvi Jaiswal for his temperament and caliber.© PTI

Former India cricketer and coach Sanjay Bangar‘s son Aryan recently shared a reel on Instagram to showcase the transformation journey. However, the reel was later deleted. The 23-year-old went through a hormonal replacement surgery and took to social media to share the 10-month progress. Taking the internet by storm, Aryan has now changed his name to Anaya. Currently living in Manchester, Anaya shared some pics with former India skipper MS Dhoni and star batter Virat Kohli in the reel. 

“Chasing my dream of playing cricket professionally has been a journey filled with sacrifices, resilience, and unwavering dedication. From early mornings on the field to facing the doubts and judgments of others, every step has demanded strength,” wrote Aryan (now Anaya) in the video caption. 

Sanjay Bangar’s son undergoes harmone replacement surgery.

Aryan becomes Anaya!

Have a look at Ananya’s instagram post!#Cricket #CricketTwitter #SanjayBangar pic.twitter.com/esePJjf4Ua

— Amit T (@amittalwalkar) November 10, 2024

“But beyond the game, I had another journey. A path of self-discovery and lot of challenges faced. Embracing my true self meant making hard choices, letting go of the comfort of fitting in, and standing up for who I am, even when it wasn’t easy. Today, I’m proud to be a part of the sport I love at any level or category, not only as an athlete but as my authentic self. The road hasn’t been easy, but finding my true self has been the greatest victory of all,” he added. 

Just like Bangar, Anaya is also a cricketer who has represented Islam Gymkhana in local club cricket. Apart from this, the left-handed batter has also played for the Hinckley Cricket Club in Leicestershire. 

However, in November 2023, the International Cricket Council (ICC) stated transgender athletes will not be allowed to participate in women’s cricket. 

“Inclusivity is incredibly important to us as a sport, but our priority was to protect the integrity of the international women’s game and the safety of players,” stated ICC CEO Geoff Allardice.

Taking to Instagram, Anaya also shared a lengthy post to express disappointment over ICC’s new rule. 

Anaya (previously Aryan) is currently living in Manchester and is very active on Instagram and always keeps the followers updated.