Harbhajan on Suryakumar Yadav’s form: Maybe, he is saving it for T20 World Cup
As India gears up to defend the T20 World Cup title, at home, captain Suryakumar Yadav’s form remains a concern. The seasoned campaigner could only score 213 runs across 20 matches and 18 innings in 2025, averaging just over 14.
However, former India international Harbhajan Singh is confident that Suryakumar will strike form when the ICC event begins on February 7. “May be, he is saving it for the World Cup,” Harbhajan said on the sidelines of an event announcing the partnership between Mumbai Indians and Malaysia Airlines.
“Surya is a class player. There is no doubt about it. I still believe that he is probably the No.1 player in this format. People often talk about how great AB de Villiers is, but we have our own guy who does the same job. And I do back him to come good for India in this World Cup,” Harbhajan said, adding: “Not just as a captain, but as a batter. I am hoping for some big runs from him…”
A member of India’s T20 World Cup-winning team in 2007 and ODI World Cup in 2011, Harbhajan believes that playing at home won’t put any extra pressure on the Indian team.
READ | Skipper Suryakumar Yadav acknowledges form struggles ahead of T20 World Cup 2026
“Playing international cricket itself brings pressure. It doesn’t matter where you play. It’s kind of a blessing to play in front of your home crowd, in your backyard. You know your conditions better than the others, and the support you get is unbelievable,” Harbhajan said.
“When the Indian team plays anywhere in the world, it feels like we are playing in India. But still, the support at home is very different. I hope that our team will play well here…”
With a balanced team, Harbhajan believes India has its bases covered. “I think this team has got everything. You see the batting lineup, bowling lineup and on top of it, every player is in their own league. They are match-winners,” he said, adding: “We hope that this trophy will (stay) in India. (If it happens) it will be the first time that the Indian team would win the trophy twice in a row (in 2024 and 2026). It will be fun,” he said.
Harbhajan backs Kohli after Manjrekar’s criticism
Recently, former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar took a dig at Virat Kohli, indicating that the star batter adopted the easy path by continuing to play 50-over cricket and hung up his boots in Tests, the format in which he was struggling the most.
ALSO READ | Virat Kohli dethrones Rohit Sharma, becomes No. 1 batter in ODI Rankings for the first time since 2021
However, Harbhajan backed Kohli. “If it was so easy to score runs in any format, then everyone would have made it,” he said. “Let’s just enjoy what people are doing. They are playing well, winning games, scoring runs, and taking wickets. That’s all that matters. It doesn’t matter who plays which format. Virat, whether he plays in one format or all formats, has been a fantastic player and a big time match winner for India…”
“They inspire the next generation. Manjrekar has his own way of thinking. The way I see it is that Virat and these players have played a major role to take this game forward,” Harbhajan said.
Despite moving on from Tests last year, Kohli continues to excel in ODIs and hopes to play until the 2027 ODI World Cup. “Virat is an unbelievable player. Even today, if he plays Test cricket, he will be our main player,” Harbhajan said.
In the first ODI against New Zealand on Sunday, Kohli scored 93. Prior to that, against South Africa, he had scores of 135, 102 and 65 not out.
Published on Jan 14, 2026
