Mumbai: It’s still early days for Suryakumar Yadav as India’s full-time T20 captain. His first two assignments in that role were in Sri Lanka, post the Rohit Sharma-led side’s World Cup win in June, and the home series against Bangladesh. The team’s playing style impressed as India won all those six games, but they are not the kind of opposition one can entirely base the judgement on.

Friday at Durban’s Kingsmead was his first real test. South Africa haven’t got good results recently. But Surya and Co know how dangerous they are in T20s as seen in the T20 World Cup final where they were in control almost till the end, before pressing the self-destruct button.

The conditions in Durban were what sub-continent teams dread to play in – there was rain and strong breeze when India were asked to bat. When openers Sanju Samon and Abhishek Sharma started all-out in attack, fans would have been nervous. They have seen many times that such high-risk cricket don’t pay off.

Hitting through the line on India’s flat wickets is one thing but on a lively pitch in South Africa, usually the ball will get the batter. There has been the odd dazzling innings, but a collective batting effort is rare. Sharma went after every ball, played and missed, and fell for an 8-ball seven. A batting collapse seemed around the corner.

But instead of buckling down to play cautiously, Samson kept attacking. Surya came and did the same, and when he fell for a 17-ball 21, Tilak Varma took over in his 18-ball 33. And at the end of the powerplay overs, it was the South Africa bowlers who looked rattled. Samson raced to a 50-ball 107, powering India to a total of 202/8.

It was an emphatic statement from the India T20 team on the brand of cricket they aim to play under Surya. The ultra-aggressive approach was introduced by Rohit Sharma. After his T20I retirement with the World Cup, Surya is taking it to a new level.

Friday’s display was proof that this team can give Indian T20 cricket a fresh identity.

The aggressive batting was a well thought-out gameplan executed to perfection. “When you are playing an opponent like South Africa, the energy they bring by playing aggressively – we had a chat in the dressing room that South Africa will come hard at us and we have to just respect them and do what we are known for. We are the world champions so we have to play like that, do what is in our control and keep looking to dominate in a format in which we’ve been doing well for the last one year,” Samson, Player-of-the-Match, told the media.

“There was a challenge. (But) we have been talking that even if you lose the toss and the conditions are tough, we have to go all out: we can’t think of looking at 160-170, we were looking to attack even while knowing that conditions were helping the bowlers,” he said.

This then should be the template leading up to the 2026 T20 World Cup in India. One challenge for the India team management is identifying those who can fill the big shoes of Rohit and Kohli after their retirement. It is in this regard too that the team management will be pleased with the promise Samson has showed with back-to-back hundreds.

Samson’s innings would also have made Rohit proud. The beauty of his innings was the confidence in his ability, a positive approach and the ability to innovate. Like Rohit, without looking to muscle it, the power Samson generated in his shots, hitting 10 sixes, was sensational.

The ‘keeper-batter also gives Surya a smart T20 brain to lean on during the game. Having led Rajasthan Royals in IPL for many seasons, he will be comfortable doing MS Dhoni’s role of providing constant inputs to the bowlers. On Friday, stump mic caught his ball-by-ball instructions in Tamil to spinner Varun Chakravarthy.

Having made his India debut in 2015, it has taken a long time for Samson to fulfil potential. It’s been a tough journey, acknowledged the player who turns 30 on Monday.

“In my career, I’ve had more failures than success. When you go through those failures, you start doubting yourself. People say things, social media definitely plays its role, and then you also start thinking about it – ““Sanju, are you not made for international level? You are doing well in IPL, why is it not happening in international (cricket)?” But after so many years, I know my abilities. If I spend some time in the middle, I know I have the shot-making ability against spin and pace. And I know I can contribute to the team’s success.”

Samson thanked Surya and head coach Gautam Gambhir for backing him after his back-to-back dismissals for zero against Sri Lanka in July. “During that time, I received lot of phone calls from Gautam bhai and Surya, telling me what to work on. They said, “Your game against spin looks dicey, so gather the spinners in Kerala and practice on rough wickets.

“Communication during failure is also very important… I think I have been able to give back to my team management. I feel it is just a start…”

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