New Delhi: Australia’s legendary cricketer Ricky Ponting has advised an out-of-form India captain Suryakumar Yadav to trust his instincts as he is gearing up to lead the team at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.
Yadav has been in a disappointing form recently as he scored only 218 runs in 19 innings in 2025 and falling well short of his trademark aggressive style, with a modest strike rate of 123.16.
“That’s as big a surprise for me, just looking at his recent form. He’s been such a solid and consistent contributor for India in T20 cricket for a long time and just hasn’t been able to find it of late,” Ponting said of Yadav.
“He’s an interesting one because when I’ve seen him play his best, he’s taken six or eight or 10 balls to get going and then just lets it all go,” said Ponting.
Ricky Ponting expressed confidence that Yadav would bounce back
The former Australia skipper, however, expressed confidence that Yadav would bounce back and regain the fearless style of cricket he is known for, “He plays all of his shots and backs himself and a bit like Travis Head where it almost looks like they don’t ever fear getting out,” Ponting noted.
“That’s what I’d say to him. I’d be saying, think about scoring runs, don’t think about getting out.”
“Trust yourself, back yourself. You’re proven to be as good as anybody in the world in the T20 format and go and prove it to everybody once again.”
Ponting also opened up about Shubman Gill’s exclusion
One of the major talking points following the announcement of India’s T20 World Cup squad was the omission of Test and ODI captain Shubman Gill.
Gill failed to deliver since his return to India’s T20I setup in September, as he has scored just 291 runs in 15 innings, with a highest score of 47, and failing to secure his spot at the top of the order.
With stiff competition for the opening position, Gill was eventually left out of the World Cup squad, a decision that came as a surprise to Ricky Ponting, “Yeah, I couldn’t believe that.” Ponting said when speaking with host Sanjana Ganesan on the latest episode of The ICC Review.
“I know his recent form hasn’t been great in white-ball cricket. And the last time that I really saw much of him play was the Test series against England in the UK where he batted as well as I’ve ever seen anybody bat.”
Ponting acknowledged that Gill’s exclusion surprises him but highlighted India’s remarkable depth as a major reason behind it. He added that the abundance of talent gives the selectors the luxury of omitting a player of Gill’s quality.
“I mean one, I’m surprised, but two, it just shows the depth of Indian cricket,” Ponting stated.
“If you can think that someone as good as Shubman Gill doesn’t get picked in a World Cup squad, then it goes to show how many good players they do have.”
Ponting feels Axar Patel’s all-round skills make him a key player
India have named Axar Patel as their new vice-captain, and Ponting feels the 31-year-old’s all-round skills make him a key player as India targets becoming the first team to win consecutive T20 World Cups.
“I mean actually Patel’s been their go-to man really hasn’t he?” said Ponting.
“The last few series he’s been their pinch hitter at different times. They’ve batted him up the order at number three. When they’ve needed that left hand right hand combination he’s been the man to go out and try and do it for them and he’s