India captain Suryakumar Yadav sat at the press conference in Gwalior, hoping to take questions in the team preparation for the three-match T20I series against Bangladesh, which begins from Sunday onwards. However, amid the questions on team strategy and probable playing XI for the opener, Suryakumar was stumped by a "googly" from a reporter, who asked him point blank about the prospect of him leading Mumbai Indians in IPL 2025. And the India star did not hesitate to drop a subtle hint about his intentions.

In his final question at the pre-match presser on Saturday, Suryakumar, who is all set to lead India in a fourth T20I series, and second since being officially named as the leader, was asked about his ambitions for IPL captaincy, and the 34-year-old burst into laughter.

“Aapne googly daal diya aapne (laughs) (You put me in a spot with a wrong 'un),” Suryakumar responded.

India's top-ranked T20I batter further said that he used to often give inputs to Rohit Sharma when he was the captain of Mumbai Indians, before dropping a cheeky response.

"For India also feeling good. I captained against Sri Lanka previously against Australia and South Africa also. I have learnt from other captains on how to take the team forward. Aage dekhte hain. Chalte rahta hain. Baaki aapko pata toh chal hee jayega (Let's see how it goes. Rest you will know in due course of time)," he said as the reporters were left in splits.

Before getting up from his chair, Suryakumar added: "Jio ka mic hai (the mic belongs to Jio)," drawing more laughter.

Will MI go for a captaincy change?

MI named Hardik Pandya the new skipper for the 2024 IPL season, during which the franchise finished 10th in the points table. The forgettable season, marred with controversies over dressing-room rumours of tension among players, sparked speculations over Hardik's future, which further peaked after Rohit, who was shocking removed from MI captaincy, led India to a T20 World Cup title win, while Suryakumar pipped the all-rounder to be the next India captain.

Mumbai, along with rest of the franchises, are expected to announce their retention list by October 31. Each time will be allowed to retain just six players, using a combination of retention and Right-To-Match card, which can comprise at least five capped players (Indian or overseas) and two uncapped Indians.

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