India’s current T20I captain, Suryakumar Yadav, shared the important lessons he learned from Rohit Sharma. Yadav mentioned that he has gained a lot of experience by spending time with Rohit, both in the national team and with Mumbai Indians in the IPL.
From Rohit Sharma to Suryakumar Yadav – India’s T20I journey:
Rohit Sharma will be remembered as one of India’s greatest captains across all formats. While he showcased his leadership skills in the IPL by guiding Mumbai Indians to five titles, leading the national team was a different challenge. Rohit, however, made a seamless transition from the Virat Kohli era and led India to record success. Most notably, he ended India’s ICC trophy drought by guiding the team to victory in the T20 World Cup 2024.
After India’s T20 World Cup 2024 win in Barbados, Suryakumar Yadav took over as the captain of team India in the shortest format of the game. He has embraced many of the leadership qualities he learned from Rohit but has added his own personal touch.
Suryakumar Yadav Shares Valuable Leadership Lessons from Rohit Sharma
“Winning and losing is part and parcel of sports. Everyone has done hard work. Sometimes you do well and sometimes you don’t,” the Indian T20I skipper said when asked about India’s whitewash at the hands of New Zealand.
“I have learnt from him (Rohit) that in life, balance is important, after doing well, even if you lose, your character should not change. This is one quality sportsman should have,” Surya added.
He provided an in-depth look at the qualities that make Rohit Sharma a great leader, sharing insights into how Rohit interacts with his teammates.
“A leader decides how his team plays a particular format. When I am on the ground, I keep noticing him. How his body language is and how he keeps calm and how he treats his bowlers, how he speaks to everyone on and off the field. I know how he treats his players, what he wants from them,” he shared.
“That route I have also taken as he has been successful. Obviously, I have put my own masala in it (his own ideas). It’s been going smooth,” he laughed.
Rohit often spends time with players, especially the younger ones, to help them feel comfortable and get to know them better. Surya takes a similar approach in his own leadership style.
“From a leader, you expect how much time one spends with his guys to build that comfort level. I also try that with my boys. Even when I am not playing, I try to hang out with players, have a meal with them, little things done off the field reflect on the on-field performance,” Suryakumar Yadav said.
He believes that understanding players’ mindsets is key to bringing out their best.
“You have to understand what’s happening around and what’s going on in their minds. There needs to be a comfort level as they have different types of skill sets. The freedom to express themselves is very important and I am trying to give them that.”
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“Whatever is on their mind, I listen carefully and I try and spend a lot of time with them to understand, who can deliver for me under pressure and in crunch situations,” he concluded.
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