Suryakumar Yadav shines as India survive early scare to edge past USA

India survived an early scare from USA as Suryakumar Yadav’s fighting 84 allowed the Men in Blue to pocket a win in their T20 World Cup 2026 opener.

A tricky surface in Wankhede proved to be a nightmare for the batters as both the bowling units came up with a clutch show. The Indian captain stood out with an extraordinary display that made all the difference in the world.

Winning the toss, USA opted to bowl first. Much to the woes of the Indian fans, Abhishek Sharma (0) fell first ball. However, Ishan Kishan (20) and Tilak Varma (25) pushed back the USA advance, adding 37 runs for the second wicket. That is when things went all haywire as Shadley van Schalkwyk struck thrice in the same over, registering the scalps of Kishan, Varma and Shivam Dube (0), reducing India to 46/4 in the powerplay.

Rinku Singh (6) joined Suryakumar Yadav at the other end to throw in an anchor and SKY finally managed to get hold of his rhythm as India started retaliating. Despite Rinku Singh (6) and Hardik Pandya (5) falling in quick succession, SKY kept the boat afloat.

Axar Patel (14) came in with a crucial cameo at the other end as the duo added 41 runs for the seventh wicket. From thereon, it was all SKY as India totted up 161/9 from their allotment of 20 overs. Suryakumar Yadav stayed unbeaten for 84 from just 49 balls, hammering 10 fours and four sixes.

Knowing well that the target was fairly modest, India pressed the accelerator early as Mohammed Siraj dealt a double whammy claiming Andries Gous (6) and Saiteja Mukkamalla (0). Arshdeep Singh chimed in with the wicket of Monank Patel (2), forcing them into an uncomfortable corner as they wobbled at 13/3. Milind Kumar (34) and Sanjay Krishnamurthi (37) got together and steadied the USA ship but it wasn’t enough for them to breach the Indian defences.

Varun Chakravarthy snuck through, removing Milind Kumar while Axar Patel ejected Krishnamurthi from the equation. Shubham Ranjane (37) fought single-handedly but India kept their grip on the game as firmly as possible and eventually secured the bragging rights of the game by 29 runs. Mohammed Siraj was the pick of the lot for the Indian bowling unit with figures of 3/29. Suryakumar Yadav was the Player of the Match for his sensational innings with the bat.